Smoke and Masks
by EllixerSnow
Summary: Secrets are my trade. But there are so many things here I don't understand, some of them mundane, some of them vital to our survival, some of them define who I am, yet all of them frighten me. What I don't know scares me, and there is very little here that I know. I think it's time I fix that.
1. Prologue

Um… Hello. So I decided to start writing a fanfic and this is my first one. It'd be wise to keep your expectations low because I think this is bound to be amateur/experimental stuffs. I'll actually be surprised if I ever finish it. I mean I have quite a few ideas where I'm going with this but I don't know if I have the skills or dedication to pull it off properly.  
Right, so this will contain spoilers for the whole game/anime so I suggest you don't read this before you finish either of those (go for the game if you can, it's great). The purpose of this is to A. go through the whole Dangan Ronpa storyline again but with a Protagonist (an OC) who is more of an anti-hero and is more proactive and B. attempt to flesh out and develop the character of Celes in a believable fashion that stays consistent to her character in the game. Rated T for "Minor Coarse Language" for now.  
I also have not played the second game nor read any of the Light Novels (I don't speak Japanese) so I'll apologize for any inconsistencies with the source material in advance. English is also not my first language so don't expect perfect grammar/spelling. I will also be taking a few liberties with the plot or characters I think.  
Also I own nothing here except my OC.  
And… eh… yeah. Enjoy and leave a review if you don't mind, I'd appreciate it very much.

* * *

**Smoke and Masks**

**Prologue**

Hope's Peak Academy.

Quite an elitist name, if you think about it. Not that it's really inaccurate in any way. Basically a school for the elites, elites in any field, as it turns out. I mean they have a girl here for being an elite mercenary or something. Lord knows why they were willing to let in a paid-**killer** because apparently she's really really good at her job…

It's also where I'll be spending my school year it seems. For what reason you ask? In which field do I excel at? Or, if you were blunt, direct, unoriginal and entirely boring, which Super High-School Level am I? I can tell you it's not something as grand and adventurous as Super High-School Level Mercenary (seriously…).

No, friend, I'm afraid my field of expertise is quite humble. Secrets are my trade. I excel at finding skeletons in people's closets. In short, I'm the Super High-School Level Informant.

I'm going to make a lot of enemies in this place real quick am I? Right off the bat I've already dabble myself in most of my classmates' dirty secrets (I mean who could blame me, I have a paid-killer in my own class). The mercenary's threatening status became real tamed real quick I'll tell you. They got a serial killer, a biker who killed his own brother, and a cross-dresser of all things. Mental note, must watch myself while I'm among all these lunatics, I'm not the sturdiest of men after all. Not that the school let them in knowingly mind you, they're all here for different purposes. If only that made me feel any safer. I sighed, mentally going through the list of all my classmates in order to pick out the ones to watch out for.

Whatever, I'm not here for a rose colored school life, although if that was true for once I would be eternally grateful. I'm here for business.

With that in mind, I reluctantly made my way…

Light footsteps. Behind me. Who's this? A staff? A student? A client? I stopped dead in my track, which might not have been the best idea in retrospect, and prepared myself.

"Celestia Ludenberg. Delighted to meet you"

Ah, a classmate, much better than an impatient or unhappy client. I turned to face her.

"Nakahara Shiki, pleased to make your acquaintance, Ludenberg-san"

She smiled. Not the natural, honest smile of an average high-school girl, but the carefully practiced smile of an experienced gambler. Of course it was, this is the Super High-School Level Gambler, Celestia Ludenberg, aka Yasuhiro Taeko (a name, if my sources are to be believed, that she's trying to wipe clean from the face of the planet), Queen of Liars, more dashing in person than in any photographs I've got of her (purely for RESEARCH reason mind you). I returned the same kind of smile she gave me, and if my instinct was correct, she saw through it just as I did hers.

"Celes is fine. A fellow classmate I take it?" she said, still with that carefully controlled smile of hers.

Catchy doesn't even begin to describe this one, what with the characteristic Gothic dress, the unusual but weirdly fitting bonnet, the eccentric silver metal finger stall and that fabulous, fabulous red, matching tie (Piss off, I have a thing for ties). Very, very nice, someone who dresses in good taste, we definitely need more of those.

And that gracious slim figure, characteristic twin-drill pigtails and frighteningly deep red eyes…

"I would certainly hope so, Ludenberg-san." I replied. _Yes, I would like that very much._

She smiled, somewhat amused perhaps. I think she's measuring my worth. That's what I get for unprofessionally showing my fascination. _Good call Shiki, quite an informant you are, giving away a secret as soon as you meet a pretty girl._ I mentally slapped myself.

"Shall we head in?" I asked, after spotting a figure in the distance heading toward the school. "Having other people near me during a conversation makes me feel unsafe, a usual mindset for people in my line of work you understand."

She nodded, still with that icy mask of hers, before walking ahead of me toward the school. _This one might be dangerous,_ I thought, _a flawless liar and, by reputation at least, a ruthless gambler, but damn doesn't she look fine, and it's not like I'm much better. Tee. Hee._ I shook the thought out of my head, business first, pretty girls later.

That figure in the distance is still quite far away, and doesn't seem interested in either me or Celes, which I always take as a good sign. Long lavender hair, dark purple collared jacket, black gloves, clean tie (nice!). That would be Kirigiri Kyouko, daughter of the principle, member of the relatively secret (and evidently not so secret, to the right people) detective family. This will be one to watch out for, let's not cross path with a Kirigiri just yet.

With that thought, I followed after Celes into the school. I'm here for…

Here for…

For…

What?

What the hell?

What the hell am I doing here?

* * *

So yeah, predictable stuffs for the most part. I promise it'll diverge from the original story (apart from the OC) at some point. I think I'll flesh out the "important" characters first.  
Again, I'd very much appreciate your opinions on this as this is my first time. I have the next few chapters written but I'd like to see feedback for this one first. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 1

Thanks for the reviews of the prologue. This chapter is a lot longer for better or worse. At least this should hopefully give you a clearer impression (although at this point it is still following the original story, I promise that will change)  
I had a hard time with this one. I think it will be quite clear I'm just going over the beginning of Dangan Ronpa with a fresh perspective and some variations. I'm still fleshing out some characters at this point (not that that's any excuse if it's boring) so please bear with me for now, next chapter will start to diverge from the main story I think.  
Anyway, enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Right, right, Shiki, calm your tits. One thing at a time, what was the last thing you remember? Hope's Peak Academy, going through the list of my classmates in my head, unspecified business, hot gothic girl, detective chick in the distance. Right, no shit Shiki, what happens **after**?

…Nothing, of course I got nothing, we wouldn't want to make this nice and easy now would we? Sigh, alright, let's figure out how I got to the school, what happens **before**, maybe I can make sense of all this somehow…

…This is quite a predicament I'm in it seems. Woken up inside a storage room with no memory beside my arrival at the school, and I don't mean I don't remember how I got here, I don't remember what happens **before** that either. Nothing. Just my arrival at Hope's Peak Academy and all the thoughts that crossed my head then. I don't remember anything about myself, my family or my friends, or if I've ever had any of those in the first place. Ain't that nice? Sigh, might well try to figure out what to do at the moment.

So… I'm inside a storage room, filled with numerous shelves and cardboard boxes (Yes, Shiki, truly an astute observation, as befitting one of your status). I'm wearing the same clothes I wore when I arrived at the school, including my tie and trilby, and they're in pretty good condition too. There are surveillance cameras, which most definitely did not make me feel any better about the situation at hand. After a bit of searching, I found strange bronze coins, which I'll keep for now because they're coins obviously.

With nothing else worth noting in the room, I quickly left. I'm now in some sort of dorm filled with locked room and security cameras, nothing that would give me further clues as to what happened, so I moved on.

…Voices! Hallelujah, progress at last! The sounds were coming from the entrance hall. I braced myself and approached…

"Is it someone new?" asked a girl's voice as I walked into the room. Sharp ears this one has, I put quite a bit of care into quieting my footsteps and yet she heard me anyway.

"…Hello" I said, making my way into the room. The girl who called out before turned out to be Enoshima Junko, whom, to my dismay, I know very little about. My worry eased significantly after she flashed me a warm smile however, _maybe this one I can overlook after all._

The room contained sixteen people, including myself, Kirigiri Kyouko and Celes. It seems all my classmates are here…

All my classmates… _What? Something's off… I can't quite put my finger on it but I'm definitely missing something here…_

Crap they're starting to stare. I'll work this out later, one thing at a time.

"Hope's Peak Academy's students?" I asked.

"Apparently." said a rich-looking boy, Togami Byakuya I believe.

"Shall I assume none of you are wiser than I as to what happened here?"

"You shall **assume** that Nakahara-san." Celes said helpfully with her signature smile. Right, assume, point taken.

"You know him?" Togami pointed out, rather accusingly too.

"We met in front of the school." I explained, "right before… all this." Celes quietly nodded in confirmation.

"More importantly," Ishimaru Kiyota, "you were even later than Naegi-san, who has already made us all introduce ourselves. What do you have to say for yourself Nakahara-san?"

…introduced themselves? Wait does that mean they retain their memories? There will no doubt be distrust among us and I'd rather not start out as the oddball here. _Tread lightly Shiki._

"You all have my deepest apologies." I bowed "Nakahara Shiki, Super High-School Level Informant, pleased to make your acquaintances. I've already learnt enough about all of you," _learnt too much, most of you would say. Tee. Hee. _"one of the many benefits of being an informant you see. Further introduction would not be required unless you want to introduce yourselves personally."

Ishimaru nodded, he seems pleased by my straightforward response. "My name is Ishimaru Kiyota, my motto is…" and that's as far as he got before I lose interest._ Smile and nod Shiki, smile and nod._

Maizono, Asahina, Fujisaki and Naegi, the polite ones, also came up to me to introduce themselves personally. Most of them I probably need not watch out for, although shaking hands with a cross-dresser made me feel slightly dirty. _sorry Fujisaki, I won't judge, honest._

"Now that we're finally done with saying hello and shaking hands" Togami started, clearly irritated "let's move on to things that **actually matter**."

And just like that, the students proceed to confirm the situation. It seems none of them are any wiser of this than I. I'll simply move away from the crowd where I can study how each one response. If the iron plates are for real, and of course they are, then we might have to stay here for quite a while. If that's the case I'd like to at least learn about who I'll have to work with.

…or at least that was the plan.

"Nakahara-san." Celes approached me while the others were too busy pointing out the obvious.

"Ludenberg."

"I'd love it if you would just call me Celes. And, if you don't mind me asking, what did **you** **do** to me back then?" she said in carefully hushed voice. _I mentally whistled, this girl is bloody creepy._

"You'll have to elaborate on that one Ludenberg."

"Playing the fool now are we?" she said, flashing an even brighter (darker?) smile than before "I lost consciousness after I walked into the school, and **you** were following me from **behind.** So, Nakahara-san," she pointed at me with her finger stall "I would **love** to learn **what happened** then."

Ah. A perfectly reasonable assumption, but…

"If I recall correctly you were completely fine right at the moment **I** passed out, so perhaps I should be the one to ask that question."

"A likely tale"

I shrug. "I saw Kirigiri approaching the school in the distance back then, you could ask her to confirm my 'tale' if you really must."

She placed her finger to her chin and considered what I said. "Fair enough, I'll let you off the hook for now. You should be grateful, heh heh."

"My eternal gratitude mistress Ludenberg" I bowed playfully, one hand on my chest and one arm behind me. Somehow she seems pleased by this. I'll make a mental not, _Celes likes it when people play along with her public persona. _It seems the other students are also done with…

**DING. DONG. DING. DONG.**

Everybody froze. The image of a teddy bear (yes seriously) appeared on a nearby monitor, telling us to assemble in the gymnasium with its wacky, out-of-place voice.

I waited for a few of them to leave first before turning to Celes.

"Shall we take our leave m'lady?"

"Hmm… I think we shall." She smiled, before making her way toward the door. I'm foolishly saddened by the fact that she didn't offer her hand or something before mentally slapping myself and follow. _All in due time Shiki._

* * *

The content of Monokuma's (that's the bear) speech was fairly straight forward and the students' reactions were fairly predictable so I'll cut to the chase: We're imprisoned here, indefinitely (as anyone with a working brain could have worked out by now) and Monokuma is to be our "principle". We are to stay here forever, except for one scenario: one of us commits a murder. If such an event was to occur, the murderer would, if Monokuma is to be trusted on this front, be released, because obviously that's how society works.

And that's pretty much all that is revealed, while the rest of the students attempt whine their way out of here, I'll need to think about this properly. Leaving aside the whole murder game, we are to stay here, indefinitely. The only things stopping us are the iron plates, the lack of communication to the rest of the world and, presumably, Monokuma. Now, the first two hurdles won't be solved anytime soon I suspect. I doubt even the Super High-School Level Fighter has the strength to destroy the iron plates. I also doubt anyone with the ability to put this whole thing together would be careless enough to leave anything with access to the internet lying around. So that leaves Monokuma, the obnoxious little shit. How serious is this one? How much power does it have over us exactly? How…

And then it came to my attention that our Super High-School Level Biker, being the level-headed young man that he is, is threatening to beat Monokuma. _Yes, this will do very nicely. Good on you, Oowada-san. This is the perfect test we need right now to see just how serious our captor is, yes. If the rest of the school is any indication the bear is very, very resourceful. But hey, let's see how the willing test subject turns out yes? Monokuma is going silent, yes, this should be it…_

"THROW IT AWAY OOWADA"

_God damnit Kirigiri…_

Oowada seems understandably confused. _Yes, Oowada, a little bit more. Be the martyr, we need to be sure…_

"JUST DO IT!"

_DON'T DO IT!_

Oowada seems a bit nervous, possibly due to the urgency in Kirigiri's voice. He flung Monokuma into the air. Shortly after the bear leaves his hand…

…it exploded. And shortly after that, another Monokuma more or less materialized out of thin air.

Yes, he's serious alright. That explosion would have killed anyone at close range. This pretty much proved Monokuma has both the resources and the will to kill us. That's one mystery out of the way and none of us are dead. _Good on you Kirigiri._

Most of the students are in disbelief, you'd think the iron plates and the armed security cameras meant something… The bear gave us each an ElectroID before departing, leaving an oppressive silent among the students.

"W-Would someone care to tell me… what exactly that was?" Ishimaru breaks the silence nervously.

"A wacky bear principle, one of many too it seems, telling us how graduations work." I reply bluntly.

"H-How can you be so calm?" Enoshima asks after another brief period of silence.

"What? Was my assessment that outlandish? I thought it was rather accurate myself."

I took a few steps toward them. "Do iron plates and armed security cameras not mean anything to you guys? Has the fact that you all woke up here with no memory not prepared you for this? The truly shocking thing about what has just happened is how utterly shocked you all were."

That, was probably a bit much. I think I'll stop there before making any more enemies. I'll have to remind myself, _lay low, lest you make yourself a target._

"B-But… our whooole lives here? Unless we k-k-kill each other?" Fukawa asked "Wh-wh-what- What is this?"

"Calm yourself people" _words of wisdom, Kirigiri _"Right now we need to make sense of what we've just been told. Apparently we have two options, based on what Monokuma was saying. We can spend the rest of our lives here, together, in the academy, or…"

"…we can murder someone and leave here alive, no?" finished Celes. _A somewhat preferable prospect, or…_

_…we can murder whoever's in charge_. I'll keep that thought to myself though. Let's keep my cards close to my chest until I have a firm plan.

"Wh-Who could.. do something like that?"

"Wh-What on earth is going on here?!"

"…This isn't happening…"

And so on and so forth. Predictable responses from ordinary people, except these aren't supposed to be ordinary. I wonder if Monokuma is trying and succeeding to prove something here…

"Maybe it's a joke, maybe it's not. That's not the issue at hand." said Togami "What we should really be concerned about… is whether someone here took it seriously…"

"Don't know about you people" I said "but considering the fact that we're all locked in a facility fully equipped with armed surveillance cameras, iron plates and multiple exploding and talking teddy bears, I think I'll be taking this one very, very seriously."

What's happening right now, anyone could see. The students, me included, instinctively move away from the crowd, eyes staring at their peers with clear distrust. For all their spoken disgust at the idea of murdering another for personal freedom, they all know at least some of the students are considering that option this very moment. One could make a fine judge of character based on the students' faces at this very moment. Unfortunately Kirigiri broke the oppressive silence before I could make any clear assessment.

"So are you just going to stand here, staring at each other?"

That dragged the students back to reality, whereupon they immediately started squabbling among each other once more. _You sure this is an improvement Kirigiri?_

Sigh. "We could take a look at the ElectroIDs yes?" I shouted amidst the noises.

"Of course," Celes added "wouldn't want our ignorance to invite another spectacle like the one we just witnessed." _Indeed_. I think I heard Oowada clicked his tongue.

I booted up my ElectroID. _Nakahara Shiki,_ it said helpfully, I went through the rules. Most of them Monokuma has already mentioned. The rest are mostly inconsequential. One in particular stood out for me however. '_New rules may be appended to this list if deemed necessary._' That's no good. I was counting on finding loopholes within Monokuma own rules. With that last one I can only use each loophole I find once. I'll need to keep this in mind.

"The fuck is this? Like I'm gonna let myself be pushed around by some dumbass rules." _Oh fuck's sake Oowada._

"You could just continue on your merry way and pretend the rules don't exist." Celes said "I, personally, am rather curious to know what the penalty is for violating one…"

"Death, clearly" I replied "I very much doubt Monokuma intended Kirigiri's intervention, thanks by the way, Oowada-san would have been dead if things went the way Monokuma intended."

Oowada was silent for a moment. "My brother always says 'a man keeps his promises, even in death'. I've still got promises I ain't done keepin'… There's no way in hell I'm dying now!" Whoopie Doo.

Celes sighed, "You're a man Nakahara. Could you shed some light as to what he's talking about?"

"Not a clue. I don't make promises." _Do I? I can't really be sure because of the whole amnesia thing but I said that instinctively so maybe it's true? Interesting… _"I think he means he'll abide by the 'dumbass rules' if it means not dying."

Oowada doesn't look very pleased with my assessment but otherwise raised no objection.

"Um guys…" Maizono tries to get our attention, "Rule number six here, what do you think it means?"

'The villain who kills one of his companions will be allowed to 'graduate', _provided his crime is not betrayed to the other students'_

"Kill someone without being discovered I'd say" I answered helpfully.

"Heh Heh… are you considering it Maizono-san?" Celes said. _You might be onto something there…_

"O-Of course not, I was just wondering..."

"No? If you say so" _I think most of us will already have considered it plenty by the end of the day though. Tee. Hee._

"Anyway" Asahina said with an irritated voice "enough with all the stupid murder stuff…"

_Thus the conversation takes a turn to the pointless once more._ Good, here's an opportunity for me to figure out a plan. I approached Celes while the rest were busy arguing.

"Ludenberg?"

"Celes. You have some business with me Nakahara-san?"

"Come to my room later, I want to discuss something."

"Oh my," Celes places a hand on her lips in a rather exaggerated manner "Quite bold aren't you Nakahara-san?"

"Not like that," _although I certainly would not object if it was_ "I believe we can learn a lot if we were to have a proper discussion."

She smiled, "I'll let you know you're still my prime suspect here, and the whole murder thing isn't making me feel any safer. So no, Nakahara-san, I'd prefer to not be murder on my first day if you don't mind."

"Fair enough, I'll ask Kirigiri to come along if it makes you feel any safer."

Celes tilted her head, "You invited not one but **two** girls. My my Nakahara-san, don't bite off more than you can chew, and beware of the nice boat ~" _What!? Did she just turn into Yamada and make an anime reference? Interesting…_

I shrugged "Like I said she was with us back then, sort of. Also unlike the most of the students here, she isn't completely god awful at adapting to all this, and before you mention Togami, I think I'll wait for him to get off his high horse thank you." I leaned in closer and whispered "beside, try telling me the girl isn't suspicious."

"Quite sharp aren't you?" this time, a satisfied smile "Very well, I accept your proposal. Now allow me to witness Oowada-san's latest spectacle."

I gaze in the direction she was looking at. Oowada looks like he's about to beat someone. Naegi, being the world-class genius that he is, gets in the way and… _Oh my…_

"…THEN SHUT YER TRAP!" the enraged biker knocked Naegi a good few feet off the ground.

I mentally whistled. It seems Oowada didn't intend to do that, as he immediately look regretful and nervous. Since the rest of the students were either gasping or too busy not giving a shit, I quickly approached Naegi and check for his pulses. _Out cold, obviously._

"Congratulation Oowada-san, it seems you'll be the first one to graduate. We'll miss you ~" He actually looked frightened for a second there "I'm kidding you brick, he's alive. Out cold though, thanks to you, brute."

The rest of the students, with the exception of Celes, did not seem amused by my subpar joke. While Oowada actually looked a bit guilty, Togami simply snorted. "That's what he gets for sticking his nose in other people's business."

"H-How can you say that?" Asahina protested "He got hurt trying to protect you."

_Better intervene before Togami decide to display his world-class tact_ "ANYWAY, since **you're** responsible for this mess, Oowada-san, would you mind taking him back to his room or something? That would be wonderful, thanks."

He seems to think about this. Then reluctantly picked Naegi up "Umm… can anyone tell me where his room is? And… yeah… sorry, I didn't mean it" _That's something at least._

Maizono volunteered to lead him to the dorm area. Soon after, the rest of us agreed to split up and explore the area before meeting up later. I've already done plenty of that however, so I approached our schoolgirl detective instead.

"Kirigiri-san?"

She replied with a quiet stare. _Urgh, you're not making this easy._ I instinctively adjust my tone appropriately to better convince her. _Maybe this is something I used to do a lot?_

"I'd like us to meet up in our room and discuss the situation in a more appropriate fashion. Celes is also coming. You two seem to be one of the few in here who can stay level-headed despite the odds. Also both of you were presented when I lost consciousness back then so I was hoping we can shed some light on that front too."

She considers this quietly before giving me a satisfied nod. _Just like that huh. _Before I can take my leave however, Kirigiri stares straight at me and whispers "You knew it was going to happen. You would have allowed him to die."

_Sharp._ "I allowed the possibility. We needed to be sure how serious our captor. You stopped him though so we lost nothing."

"You were willing to sacrifice him"

"I allowed **the possibility**", _Not appeased,_ "he chose it himself", _still not appeased,_ "Yes, I'm a terrible person" I put my hands up "I'm sorry okay? It just came naturally. I'll try not to use my classmates as guinea pigs next time. I hope you still come to our meeting despite your clear disgust for me as a person. It might be indispensible to our escape."

I don't know whether what I said had any effect or not, as she simply turned and walk away without another word._ Tch. And that apology was mostly genuine too. She did agree to come to the meeting right?_

The rest of the day proceeded rather uneventfully. In short, no one could find out anything remotely helpful. All we discovered were confirmations of many of our suspicions. We confirmed that our imprisonment is, at least for the moment, indisputable (took them long enough). Kirigiri discovered a map that shows that wherever we are is identical, at least structurally, to the real Hope's Peak Academy. _You'd almost think we're in the school itself_. The rest were pointless squabbles before Celes said something that caught my attention.

"…I suggest we impose another night time rule: You are forbidden from leaving your room after curfew."

_What!? That after our agreement?_

"In our current situation, we are destined to spend our nights here cowering in fear. Never to dispel the thought… that someone might be coming to kill you…"

"And this new rule would solve that?" Oogami asked.

"Unlike the regular school rules, this is not enforceable. It would require everyone's cooperation." Celes finished.

Everyone seems to be in favor of the idea for the moment. I gave her a questioning look, to which she simply replied with her usual smile. _Did she set up the rule so our meeting wouldn't be discovered I wonder? I certainly hope so, although it's not easy to trust someone who breaks her own rule on the first day if that was the case._

_But then again it's not easy to trust me either._

"Everyone's in favor then? Wonderful. In that case I shall make my departure."

The students eventually leave the cafeteria one by one. I decided to call it a day and return to my room for now. Preparations to do, schemes to conduct, secrets to discover.

* * *

Home sweet home.

And it might well be. I don't even remember what **my** home is, so I better get used to my room for now.

Quite an ordinary room too. A bathroom, a table, a monitor, a security camera, nothing too fancy. Not that it really matters right now. All I need is personal space for my meeting with Celes and Kirigiri. I don't know who I really was before all this but he must not be that great a person if the simple idea of scheming excites me like this…

Hold on a second…

Personal space…

Security Camera…

Scheming…

…

CRAP CRAP CRAP CRAP! I didn't think we would be monitored in our own rooms. _And of course we would be Shiki. Did you honestly think Monokuma would allow SHCEMING (that is to say, unmonitored) SPACE anywhere within his facility you brainless brick?_ This changes things. We can't conduct any productive discussion here anymore. Any progress toward our escape would endanger everyone involved in the discussion. Perhaps calling off the meeting would be the best course of action?

_No. No. No. No. Any progress we make has to be achieved early on. You can see what's going on Shiki. Someone will break. Desperation is contagious. As soon as the first murder occurs, others will gleefully follow. And imagine how easy it would be to murder someone in a closed off facility filled with 16 vulnerable teenagers (okay, 15 vulnerable students). No. Must start now before shit hits the fan._

I take a deep breath. Yes, we can work this out. The camera is always on, but there will be blind spots. Except that doesn't mean shit because there's no chance Monokuma can't listen in on our conversations whenever he chooses to, but perhaps…

Yes, maybe this will do, yes. Seems I have the tools required for this. The security camera is also in the right position, yes. And I have the perfect partners for this task. Yes, this will do very nicely. _Time to work Shiki._

* * *

And that's that. I did sort of promise a more edgy protagonist (he's a bit of an arsehole no?). Next chapter will shake things up a bit in term of plot and, I think, will develop Celes further.  
Also Celes's mentioning the "Nice Boat" might be a bit self-indulgent on my part but it is my belief that she's actually into that kind of stuffs. The canon free time events with her all has references to existing manga (at least according to the wiki, I've never read those manga) so I suspect Celes was actually basing her tales (if they were indeed tales) on manga Taeko has enjoyed. That's just my interpretation though and I do think my approach could have been more subtle. Tell me what you think.  
As always reviews are very much appreciated. Personally I think this chapter is way too long with too few additions/alterations but let me know what you think anyway.


	3. Chapter 2

Thank you to everyone who left reviews. As always I appreciate all feedbacks whether they be simple encouragement (I need those more than you may think :) ) or constructive criticism. As I've said I'm new to this so tell me if my approach to these things is in anyway inappropriate.  
Also, I know I've been providing an update once a day so far but that's only because I've written multiple chapters before uploading them one at a time so expect this to slow down once I get to the last chapter I have on my computer.  
Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Knock. Knock.

That should be them. _Deep breath. Chin up. Time to scheme._ I grab my notebook and open the door, being mindful of the camera.

"Hello Nakahara-san, good to see you're well" Celes said with a more chilling smile than usual. Kirigiri is also looking at me with silent suspicion. They're waiting to see how I'll deal with the cameras. _Appreciate your trust, girls. I might not have come at all once I've seen the cameras in our rooms_.

"Good to see you Ludenberg, Kirigiri. Glad you all came. Please sit on the bed" I greeted, showing them a page of my notebook, being careful to keep it out of sight of the camera.

_'Security camera. I got this. Follow my lead and read fast.' _

They seem to catch up quickly. Celes, being the Liars' Queen, did not allow a single crack on her icy mask, except for the fact that her smile grew slightly less threatening. Kirigiri's poker face was similarly spotless. _Magnificent performance ladies, perhaps once we get out we can be business partners._

They naturally sat on the bed and waited. I moved my chair to the ideal position (that is to say, somewhere where I can pull out my notebook without being discovered), sat down, retrieved my notes and prepared my social/diplomatic voice._ Seems this is something I used to do often since it all came naturally._

"Again, glad you all came. I was hoping to have a normal civilized talk with someone who can keep cool in a situation like this. It has been a very strange day you see." I said in a disquietingly cheerful voice (urgh) while showing them the next page of my notebook.

_'Answer normally when there's no question here. Sneak in answers to __**these**__ questions otherwise. Avoid looking at the notebook when the camera is looking at you. Blink three times for any answer you can't provide completely right now.'_

"Indeed it has." Celes replied, this time with a more satisfied smile "Especially that latest spectacle with Oowada-san no?"

"Quite an event that was. Speaking of which… Is Naegi-san okay, Kirigiri? I'm worried his heroism is going to get him hurt in here at some point." I showed Kirigiri the next page.

_'You were there when I and Celes entered the school yes?'_

Kirigiri stares at me for a bit "**Yes**" _Good_,_ next page, this one might shed some light._

"Ah. That's good. Let's not allow the first act of heroism here to harm someone. Did anything out of the ordinary happen to Naegi on his way back?"

_'Did you see anything strange happened back then? You were behind us. We lost consciousness as soon as we entered the school.'_

"**No**." She replied bluntly. Celes gave her a suspicious look.

"No? Nothing at all? You saw nothing out of the ordinary?"

"**Nothing**. They got to Naegi's room **without any incident**. At least none that I saw."

"Ah. That's good to know isn't it?" Next page.

_'And things proceeded normally for you until you reach the school where you also passed out?'_

She stared at me for a while "**Yes**".

_No three blinks. That means she gave us everything she knows (unless she lied). So nothing happened to us as we entered the school? Why did we pass out then..._

Celes looks understandably confused but quickly brought up that smile as soon as the camera turns her way. _Whatever, now, to the real purpose of the meeting_.

"Ah, but enough of that, let's discuss our immediate future of living in this place. Do you guys remember all the rules we have to follow? There's one for…" Then I went on like a rambling school girl, stretching out my conversation for as long as possible. Next page will be a long one. Thankfully Celes occasionally throw in the obligatory response to make the conversation seems natural.

_'I propose an alliance between the three of us, at least for now. Here are the terms:  
I will provide you with any information you deem necessary if you can justify the needs. Any murder committed must be solved, and it is very, very likely that someone will start the first murder within the first few days. Call it intuition of people in my line of work. As I am the Super High-School Level Informant, I believe I have the highest amount of facts on all the students here and, therefore, will be invaluable for solving __**any**__ mysteries. I think you can both agree that ignorance will be fatal here, and you will never be ignorant with me on your side. Secrets are my trade and I look out for my allies.  
In return, however, any information you have, personal or otherwise, that may increase the chance of our escape or the chance of us solving a murder, you will provide me. I will not give away your secrets without your consent as long as we're allies. Furthermore, any progress each of us makes toward escaping will be reported.  
This contract is broken if any of us turns out to be a killer or the mastermind, or is in any way an accomplice of either.'_

"…I mean there are so many rules here. But do you think the terms are fair?"

"**No.**" Kirigiri said bluntly.

"**Of course not.**" Celes said with a gleeful smile. "The terms are meant to keep us in check and had we not been the victims of this unfortunate situation, **there's no reason for us to follow them**."

_Heh, thought so. They either don't trust me yet or don't think I'm an ally worth having. I came prepared though._

"Ah, but let's think about it this way…"

_'Is that so? Then I'll try another approach._

_This one is for Kirigiri: __**FATHER.  
**__This one is for Ludenberg: __**YASUHIRO TAEKO.**_

_I think **you would prefer** to be my ally.'_

"…so I think it is best to abide by the rules for now no?"

The effects were immediate. I expected one of two things on their faces: Fear or Anger, followed by reluctant acceptance.

There was neither fear nor anger on Kirigiri's face. If anything she was somewhat confused, then interested, then… hopeful? It was strange, it scares me.

On Celes's face however, there was both fear AND anger, and it was disquieting sight. I can't say I understand why Taeko needed her Celes persona (or perhaps why Celes hated Taeko), but I think I can see just **how much** she does. A fearful Celes is a sight to be remembered, and the fact that I do not understand it scares me just as much as Kirigiri's reaction did.

Kirigiri was the first to give in, although 'give in' might be the wrong word, as she accepted my proposal with a small smile on her face. "Yes, if you put it that way, I think I would indeed** prefer to abide by the terms**, if the **benefits** you mentioned were **real.**"

Celes's response was a lot less encouraging.

"Yes… I think that **would be for the best**. Monokuma does have us** at gunpoint** after all" she said with an aggressive smile on her face. _Ouch._

"I'm glad you both agree. It would indeed be terrible had any of us choose not to abide by **the terms** after all." _Keeping my composure in front of these girls is getting increasingly difficult. _"Ah, but it's getting late, let us not abuse your own rule anymore yes Celes? Let's get some good night sleep in order to be equipped for tomorrow."

Kirigiri nodded and head to the door on her own. Celes, on the other hand, stayed just long enough for her smile to become disturbing before heading out silently. _Urgh, don't look at me like that, an alliance will be indispensable to our escape. This guilt is totally unreasonable. I don't have time for this, I should be spending my time considering the implication of what Kirigiri told me, figure out a clear plan and try to pinpoint exactly what I think I'm missing (I just know I'm missing something). Sigh_. _Your fault I'm not getting any work done tonight Celes._ I quickly hid my notes before following her, leant in and whispered.

"Umm... Yeah… Won't pretend that wasn't my fault, although I didn't expect that much of a reaction, but… umm… sorry Yasuhiro-san… Yeah…" _Master of Charm, Shiki._

She didn't respond. For some reason Celes looks mildly surprised (or confused, I don't really know anymore) with her eyes wide open. She simply turned and left after a while. _Tch, at least she looked slightly less hateful. Can't please everyone I suppose._

_But I really wanted to please her…_

With such an unprofessional thought occupying my mind, I let sleep took me. Perhaps tomorrow will prove more productive…

…and perhaps Monokuma will grow wings and fly his arse the fuck out of here. Fat chance…

* * *

**Shiki Nakahara's Notes - Day 1 Report:**  
Survivors: 16  
Facts:  
. Unlike my classmates (as far as I know), I currently possess no memory of anything that happens before my arrival at Hope's Peak Academy  
. Kirigiri said (!) she saw nothing unusual happen to me or Celes as we enter the school  
. I am to stay here indefinitely unless I decide to murder someone and get away (!) with it  
. Monokuma has shown that he possesses both the resources and the will to kill any of us  
. An alliance has been forged (forced?) between me, Kirigiri and Ludenberg  
Notes:  
. I seem to possess a rather impressive degree of skill in acting and a rather unhealthy obsession with getting what I want  
. Does my unusual case of amnesia imply that I used to know things that Monokuma find threatening?  
. Have to watch out for: Togami, Kirigiri, Touko, Ludenberg  
. Fitting in may be best right now. The "murder game" will tear the students' trust apart very soon  
. Kirigiri statement implies one of two things (that I can think of right now): Either this is indication of memory loss, or Kirigiri lied, making her a likely ally of Monokuma, if she isn't Monokuma herself  
. Kirigiri took my attempt at blackmail with a hint of interest and hope. Very, very strange  
. Celes most definitely did not take kindly to the fact that I know about her other/past/real self  
. I am definitely, DEFINITELY, missing something. Something that should be clear as day but somehow isn't. I'm getting headache trying to pinpoint it

* * *

That wrapped up this chapter. It was certainly a lot easier to write than the previous one, a lot shorter too but I can't find anything to add right now and the stopping point seems natural.  
Next chapter will be very short and experimental and will (hopefully) show my interpretation of Celes's character.  
Again, reviews would be wonderful, especially now since it's starting to depart from the original story.


	4. Chapter 2 - Intermission

I don't know whether it's appropriate to leave replies to reviews here or not since I'm still new but here we go.  
AnimesWorld: My OC likes Celes (initially, I plan to develop this further) for the same very simple reason (I suspect) why most fans like Celes: She immediately comes off as an interesting and unique person and seems competent in whatever it is that she does. He's not head over heels for her (yet, if ever) and only "recruited" her for her skills in influencing/manipulating other people and adapting to the situation. If you don't like Celes, that's really unfortunate, since developing her was one of the main ideas I started out with for this fic so she will obviously be a major part of the story.  
Please do not feel that I don't appreciate reviews because I do not reply to them. I don't reply to all of them because it would be unfair to leave out certain reviews in favor of others. For now I'll reply to questions only (without touching spoilers/speculations) but know that I really love reading all your feedback. Do tell me if what I'm doing here is in anyway inappropriate or against the established rules.  
Anyway, enjoy. This one is really experimental I think so maybe it'll come off as a pretentious mess. Tell me what you think though.

* * *

**Chapter 2.5** (Celes's POV)

My, what an **ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL** day that was.

_I wish I could close my eyes and never have to open them again._

It turns out I'm now to live in this **SHITHOLE **of a school **INDEFINATELY**, unless I choose to **MURDER** one of my classmates who are, mostly, **DULL AS BRICKS**. Sigh, this is quite a conundrum I'm in it seems, I wish I had a cup of royal milk tea to cheer myself up.

_I am to stay here for a very long period of time it seems, unless I choose to murder one of the students here, something Celes would do without batting an eye I'll bet._

Oh but at least we are supervised by a **FUCKING OBNOXIOUS **cute talking bear with **TERRIBLE TASTE **in everything imaginable. Just looking at this room makes me want to throw up in **DISGUST** at how **PATHETICALLY MUNDANE** it is, reminds me of a certain girl…

_The situation here gets increasingly more absurd the longer it goes on, a stark contrast to the mundane girl beneath this mask. _

I suppose I'm glad that we've already made **ABSOLUTELY NO PROGRESS** toward our escape today. Instead I am to join a **FUCKING RIDICILOUS** alliance with a boy who oh so charmingly **BLACKMAILED** me into accepting his **ABSURD TERMS**.

_We made little to no progress except for the so called alliance Nakahara-san 'forced' me into._

I think I'll just have to take comfort in the fact that **SOMEONE **knows about the **BORING, AVERAGE, PATHETIC **and **UTTERLY, UTTERLY ORDINARY** girl by the name of **YASUHIRO FUCKING TAEKO**. He was so proud of it too, well **GOOD FOR HIM.**

_And now someone knows about me. Nakahara-san knows about Yasuhiro Taeko._

Someone out there knows about the old (real?) me. Someone out there knows what's under this mask. Someone out there knows the utterly mundane girl that is Yasuhiro Taeko. Someone out there knows… and I'm scared.

_Celes did not come easily. She took years of constant excessive practice, carefully constructed lies, and countless sacrifices before Taeko was good enough to fool anyone. But once she came, she came. Celes was more striking, more vivid than anything Taeko ever was, and wherever she goes the world stops to stares. But Taeko is still here, under the carefully constructed mask, hidden from the rest of the world, except she's clearly not so hidden anymore._

But would it be so bad? Nakahara has proven himself to be a reliable asset. He has shown aptitude in dealing with difficult situations. His skills as an informant will be useful to have in here. Despite his fascination in me, he doesn't seem to be the pathetic bootlicking type. He even looks like he would make a fine butler. And most importantly, he's just as bad as I am: A ruthless scoundrel who sees other people as nothing more than either assets to further his own gain or interesting and worthy human beings to have near him.

_Is Nakahara not someone I'd rather have by my side though? His apology was definitely sincere and he actually looked hurt back then. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to be Taeko again. Perhaps he would be fine with Taeko… And that clean black hair… And those pale blue eyes…_

**I think not.**

_No chance I'm afraid._

I take a nearby mirror in my hand…

_…and gaze at it…_

…Celes stares back at me with her crimson eyes.

_...I see only a girl, colorless, empty, if not for her mask, her precious mask._

How could those eyes ever love anything?

_How could anyone ever find anything in that girl?_

* * *

And there you go. Like I said, short and experimental. Obviously the lines in italics are "Taeko's voice" while the others are "Celes's", they don't talk to each other so read them separately to avoid confusion. In summary I feel that Taeko is (or believes that she is) a very plain person, sort of like Naegi's description of himself in the intro, except Taeko takes this extremely badly. Celes, then, is Taeko's fantasy persona, representing a desire to be a more colorful person than she is (or she believes herself to be) and she obviously went overboard with it. Please let me know how you feel about what I'm doing here in your review.  
Next chapter is only partly done so expect daily updates to slow down soon. It will be mostly character development again I think, although it (hopefully) won't just go through the original story like Chapter 1 did.


	5. Chapter 3

Not much to say here. I'm pretty much just killing time until Monokuma starts with his incentives. First half is light-hearted, second half is me failing at killing time. Feedback would be great.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

"Good morning you guys! It is now 7:00 AM! Rise and shiiiine! Let's make today into the best day it can be!"

_Obnoxious. Fucking. Bear._

Judging by the fact that the first thing I want to do in the morning is hang myself, I must not have been a morning person even before all this. _And yesterday's business didn't help either_.

Well, the great Monokuma has spoken, _rise and shine Shiki._

Of course, there were work to do, but I can't be arsed right now. I know, I just know, I wouldn't get anything done this early on in the morning. So I let my brain go on autopilot: shower, clothes, breakfast.

As I was leaving my room, I spotted Naegi and Maizono hanging out, _well good for them…_

"Um… morning Nakahara-san" Naegi greeted nervously, Maizono did the same in turn. _Am I scary or something?_

"…Naegi, Maizono" I replied. They seem to want to ask something but apparently got nervous and left quickly, as if they were afraid I would bite their faces off had they said the wrong thing. _What?_

Things continued similarly on the way to the cafeteria.

"…hello... Nakahara-san…"

"Fujisaki."

"GREETING NA…kahara-san?"

"Ishimaru."

"Yo… Nakahara…"

"Kuwata."

_Why is everyone so irritatingly reserved? Did I do something?_

I do not know how I feel about seeing Celes having her breakfast as I walked into the cafeteria. Regardless, after what happened yesterday, I guess I should take the initiative.

"Morning Ludenberg"

She looked up, and there was that aggressive smile again.

"Morning Nakahara-san. Good to see you in high-spirit today. Have you had many pleasant dreams last night? I certainly did. Nothing beats going to bed knowing all your secrets are safe. Understandable, really, after all the things that happened yesterday, I feel more secure than ever, all thanks to you Nakahara-san. Anyway, I'll take my leave now, hope you have a wonderful day, I certainly will. Heh heh."

And with that Ludenberg stood up and left the cafeteria without giving me a chance to respond. She even left behind her uneaten breakfast out of spite. _I wonder if she never intended to eat her meal in the first place and only brought it as a passive-aggressive way to further alienate me. That sounds like something she would do._

_Well I don't have any desire to eat either._ I sat down with my head on the table, which seems to make a few students coming into the cafeteria feel uncomfortable. _Tough._

"Morning Nakahara-kun"

"…" _Go away..._

**"GOOD MORNING NAKAHARA-KUN!"**

"…good morning Enoshima…"

"Christ you look like crap"

I simply groaned in response.

"Haha, what's this? Problem with girls?"

I groaned loader.

"…wait seriously? You of all people? Ha… haha… hahahahaha…" she laughed loudly for quite a while, holding her stomach for good measure. _Appreciate it, lady._

Enoshima stops after roughly half a minute, out of breath. "Sorry, sorry, it's just so freaking absurd y'know? It's like you just told me Celes suddenly stripped and did a voodoo dance inside the gymnasium or something."

I groaned again.

"Wait she didn't…"

"NO!" …_fuck's sake woman…_

"Oh, good, then… you groaned because I mentioned… oh… right"

_Master of tact, Enoshima._

She bites her nail, thinking about how to proceed, before ultimately making up her mind.

"Bah, screw her. Hang out with me Nakahara. I'm bored and it's not like you're going to get any work done at this rate anyway."

"I'll pass…"

She crosses her arms and gives me an annoyed look... before pulling me to my feet forcibly.

"FINE, fine, let go, I'll come if it pleases you so much…"

Enoshima grins, giving me one of those annoying peace sign before starting to aimlessly wander around the school with me dragging my feet behind her. _I guess this is just as productive as what was doing._

_Enoshima Junko. Super High-School Level Model…_

…and that's about all I got. I wish I've done more research on this one now. The fact that I'm lacking any secret to use against her is making me feel uncomfortable. I suppose I must not have thought a model would be a very threatening student. _She certainly is an annoying student though. Tch, no sense crying over spilled milk._

"So are we going anywhere in particular?" I asked after a while.

"Nope" Enoshima replied gleefully.

"Urgh… this is your idea of hanging out?"

"At least it's not having my head on a table because of some lady friend"

"Quiet" I grumbled.

"Haha. First day and you're already head over heels for a girl Nakahara-kun? I expected better"

"I'm not head over heels for anyone Enoshima… It's just that time in the morning you know? That time when whatever frustration you feel multiplies tenfold. I'll be back on my feet scheming my way out of here in no time"

"Still, you clearly have a thing for Celes. What's up with that?"

I shrug "I like competent, smart and interesting people. She also has taste" _I also have a thing for women with ties_, but I'll keep that particular oddity to myself.

"Fair enough. Why not Kirigiri then?"

"…huh. Good point. I don't know honestly, maybe I met Celes first?" _Is there something more to it I wonder? I don't understand, that makes me nervous. _"Anyway can we stop talking about girls please?"

She grins "Sure, let's talk about guys then…"

"NO!" that made her laugh again, I let out a sigh "I think I'd prefer to go back to get back to wandering aimlessly thank you"

Amazingly enough she's fine with that. Odd how she was so insisting on getting me to hang out yet was completely okay with me not doing shit.

"Oh hey that's the weird Monomono Machine over there" she started "Have you, like, tried it yet?"

"Nope. Never saw the point. Beside Monokuma might have rigged it to blow up randomly for giggles or something"

"Oh don't be such a wuss Nakahara, where's your spirit of adventure?"

"Never had one of those, people tend to live longer that way" regardless I inserted a coin into the machine before she has a chance to start whining again. My obsessive nature of collecting these things is making my trousers heavy anyway.

"See? Didn't blow up did it? …and what kind of freaky doll is that?" Enoshima said, poking the antique doll that came out.

"Beats me, I'll hold on to it though" I said as I inserted another coin.

"I was half expecting you to, like, dump it to me or something. Are you actually into collecting weird stuffs or something?"

"What? I thought the thing looked pretty cool. I'm not entirely sure… HOLY SHIT!"

Enoshima jumped a few meters away the second she heard me. _Are supermodels that fit? I'll need to be more careful at this rate_ "WHAT? IS IT GOING TO BLOW UP AFTER ALL?"

"Blow up? Forget about that. Look at this, this is high-quality stuffs Enoshima" I show her the cup of Luwak Coffee that just (somehow) popped out of the machine "I'd gladly risk being blown up if it means I'm getting this stuff every morning"

Enoshima scratches her head looking somewhat annoyed "Don't scare me like that Nakahara. Also what kind of weirdo, like, gets that excited over coffee?"

"You're bloody insane Enoshima. Do you know how good this stuff is?"

"Taken out of context, one would be forgiven for thinking you were talking about high-quality drugs there"

I wave my hand dismissively, sipping my coffee while it's still warm "It's a wonder they don't consider these things drugs in the first place. Man, with this I'll be able to work as soon as I wake up" S_uddenly I gain a new appreciation for the insane amount of coins I collected in here._

"You're such a workaholic Nakahara" she sighed, before turning away "Well you seem to be feeling better now. Later" Enoshima left, holding up one of her peace sign again.

"See ya Enoshima and thanks" I said, sipping my coffee again, before a thought occurred to me…

_I enjoyed that a hell of a lot more than I thought I would. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to do that again sometime…_

That's something for another day though, time to work.

* * *

I've spent the last few hours talking to my classmates and measuring their potential uses, _because obviously that's what a good person would do_. Oogami said she can destroy locked doors but not much else (I advised her to stay put before Monokuma figure out that particular loophole). Fujisaki said she would attempt to hack the school network if she had a computer, but she doesn't, so much for that. Fukawa seems to have her murderous side in check for now (I didn't ask directly obviously). Togami is still a cunt, Celes is still pissed and everyone else is still too busy not doing shit. The natural order of things is preserved.

Right now I'm sitting in the cafeteria again, sipping another cup of _fabulous_ coffee while considering my next step. A million potential questions flashing through my mind…

"Nakahara…"

_If this is really Hope's Peak Academy, why are the people in my class the only ones here?_

"Nakahara…"

_Could everybody else somehow be responsible?_

"Nakahara…"

_Could Monokuma be more than one person?_

"Nakahara…"

_ Why does my shoulder feel like there's a hand on it? Oh, right…_

"Hello Kirigiri"

Kirigiri doesn't look annoyed in the slightest, _that's one of the few benefits of having to deal with people like her_ "About our terms…"

"Wait, before that, do you think Monokuma could be more than one person?" _Might well take advantage of her indifference to common courtesy._

"Unlikely"

"Oh?"

"Some of the areas are closed off after curfew"

"Ah, I see" _Super High-School Level Sleuth indeed _"That implies that Monokuma is controlled by only one person who needs to sleep and cannot monitor us at all time. Good job Kirigiri. That opened up a lot of options"

"Yes. Now I require the information you promised yesterday" she speaks considerably more quietly "What did you mean by _father?_"

_What?_ "W-Why are you asking that?" _C-could my information be false somehow? I'll hang myself if that particular disgrace becomes a reality._

"I've had amnesia ever since I arrive here"

"…and you're just going to admit that?"

She nodded.

"Damn it Kirigiri don't go around admitting that, most of the students here already find you suspicious. Let me think about this for a second"

_Is she telling the truth? If yes, Monokuma considers her memories threatening in some way. Yes, this could be a great step forward, bringing back memories our captor is trying to erase. On the other hand, if she's lying, there's no harm in giving her information she already has. Yes, I could even bend the truth in some way to strengthen our alliance for now, Kirigiri doesn't trust me yet and I suspect she's still keeping things from me, yes…_

_No, she's the sleuth here. She's more likely to find the deeper truth to this than me. It's a waste to pass up an opportunity like this but then again, detectives' intuitions are frightening. Let's not push my luck._

"Your father is Kirigiri Jin, principle of Hope's Peak Academy. The Kirigiris are secret detectives who excel at their work. By becoming principle, your father has forsaken his family's tradition. By using your status as a Kirigiri, you have betrayed your family's secrecy in order to join the school, presumably to meet your father. That, is the gist of it"

One can pretty much hear the wheels in her head processing the information given. _Why would such information be threatening? Is her status as the Super High-School Level Sleuth dangerous, or her relationship to her father? If it's the latter, that increases the chances of Kirigiri Jin being the culprit. Yes, that sounds very likely. I think I'll keep that to myself._

"Without my memories intact, I'll have to take your word for it. Thank you Nakahara, your co-operation has been genuine so far"

"Right, I'll take my leave now, don't go overboard with snooping around and don't destroy anything"

"The rules…"

"The last one. New rules can be appended. Make use of loopholes wisely"

She nodded and left. Suit me just fine I suppose, she's a fine ally, if not a very friendly one.

I'll spend the rest of the day figuring out a daily schedule for my new life here. Not much else to do until Monokuma makes a move.

_And the thing with Celes also needs to be resolved at some point. She has shown skills in playing with the other students' psyche. If anyone can preserve order in this situation, it's her._

_Yeah, that's the only reason, probably…_

* * *

**Shiki Nakahara's Notes - Day 2 Report:**  
Survivors: 16  
Facts:  
. Kirigiri said (!) she lost her memories as well  
. I told Kirigiri what I know of her  
. I did not tell her about my own amnesia  
. Sakura can destroy locked doors, told her to stay put

Notes:  
. Kirigiri's amnesia (if she had told me the truth) explains her interest in my attempt to make her an ally  
. It also seems to suggest that her father may be the mastermind. Either that or he's somehow vital enough to all this that her memories had to be wiped  
. Kirigiri Jin, being the principle of Hope's Peak, also has the highest chance of pulling something like this off, although I know of no reason of why he would

* * *

Yeah, not much plot actually happened. Tell me what you think though. Next chapter will develop some other characters again, though I may change my mind. Reviews would be great, thanks.


	6. Chapter 4

Thanks for the feedback.  
This was initially going to be two chapters but they turned out to be too short. It's going to be somewhat similar to last chapter.  
Anyway enjoy and please leave reviews if you've got time to spare.

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"Good morning you guys! It is now 7:00 AM! Rise and shiiiine! Let's make today into the best day it can be!"

_Annoying. Little. Shit._

_The usual then, shower, clothes, coffee_.

"Good morning Nakahara-kun" Naegi approaches as I was finally getting my morning coffee. _They better not run out of these things before I escape…_

"Morning, Naegi"

"You look a lot better today Nakahara-kun" I raise my cup of coffee "Haha… I guess we all have our needs. Say, are you busy right now?"

"Not really, no. Why?"

"You wanna hang out? I just want to get to know my classmates that's all…"

"Hang out? Get to know our classmates? Why?"

"…D-Don't you think we should at least get to know the people we'll be living with for however long we'll be staying here?"

"A fair point" _what with the murder game and everything,_ _though I'm almost certain there isn't much to learn from this one._ I decided to go with him though, baby steps.

We simply walk for a while, talking about meaningless things. It makes me feel uneasy wasting my time in such an unproductive fashion, but I suppose it's important to understand how the rest of the students tend to spend their time around here. Like it or not I'll be living with them and it's a lot easier to avoid being killed if I know what kind of people I'm going to have to live with.

_Naegi Makoto, Super High-School Level Good Luck, possibly the least threatening one in here. No specialty, squeaky clean profile and not a single dirty secret I can effectively use against him (although I'm sure I can blackmail him using the secrets of his close friends if I had to). The only reason he went to Hope's Peak was due to winning a random lottery the school suddenly decided on. The principle must have had a particularly satisfying cup of coffee or something the day he threw out that particular absurd decision…_

"So… how are you Nakahara-kun?" he asks after a while.

"Well enough, considering the circumstances, although if they run out of coffee I think I'll have to settle for murder and hope for the best"

"Haha… You have a dark sense of humor Nakahara" _I was only half-joking though_ "So… um… what do you think of our situation so far?" _Are you actually the Super High-School Level Psychiatrist or something Naegi?_

"Not ideal but I can bear it for a while I believe"

"Ah, that's good Nakahara-kun. It's good to have hope"

_…what?_ "Hope? What's hope got to do with anything?"

"…you believe we'll be able to leave this place at some point right?"

"I'll try to make it so, believing has nothing to do with anything. If we leave this place it's going to be either because we escaped or someone came to save us or Monokuma got bored, it's not going to be because we merely believe the situation will change"

Naegi seems confused for some reason "But don't you have to believe in something to make it happen?"

"Things happen regardless of whether you believe in them or not, beliefs change nothing"

"You're a strange person Nakahara-kun"

I shrug "I'm perfectly normal, it's everybody else that's strange"

"Haha… that's one way to look at it" He said scratching his head, smiling. _This one must be a total sub…_

_He's easy to talk to though. Maybe that's a kind of strength in itself? Perhaps he's not as useless as I thought he was. After all, anyone who can keep the students' psyche healthy is potentially useful in this situation. Due to my lack of skill in dealing with people, that's a task I'll never be able to accomplish. A tool for every task, a task for every tool. Perhaps he's worth looking out for after all, I'll need to keep that in mind._

"And you Naegi? How are you?"

"It hasn't been that bad so far honestly. I mean I definitely want to leave this place but the company here is… interesting. And we're not exactly being directly tortured in anyway so that's always nice I guess…"

"Hmm, a fair assessment, although that may change once the murders start"

"I-I don't really think someone's going to kill"

I smile, "Heh… It's good to have hope Naegi" _it's better to be productive but one can't have everything I suppose. _He looks nervous for a moment there. Messing with this guy is kinda fun actually. Tee. Hee.

We continue normally as if nothing happened, as if we weren't locked inside a closed off facility indefinitely unless we choose to kill one of our peers. It's insane how carefree this one is despite our absurd situation. It's not like he doesn't want out like the rest of us, it's just that he makes the idea of living here forever seems a lot less hellish. Even when faced with the constant risk of being murdered, he somehow reminds us that we still enjoy living. Somehow, around him, it feels as if life, against all odd, is just fine.

_And I can almost believe him._

Then I noticed something "Got to go Naegi. Later" _whoops, common courtesy bollocks_ "Appreciate you taking the time to hang out with me" _that will do._

"Um... yeah… See ya Nakahara-kun"

I quickly left Naegi's company and approached my target._ Deep breath._

"Morning, Ludenberg"

Ludenberg looks no better or worse than she was yesterday. Her smile is still there, her stance still exudes control, her eyes still watchful. But this is the Queen of Liars, and these things are expected regardless of whether she's in a good mood or not, so I might as well take my chances now.

"Good day, Nakahara-san…"

"Do you mind if we talk?" I interrupt her before the incident from yesterday repeats itself.

Ludenberg lets out a sigh "I suppose this is about the other day?" I nod "Very well, I'll humor you for now Nakahara. As you can see there isn't much else to do in here, although Naegi has been pleasant company recently. Heh heh" _Mental note, definitely watch out for Naegi._

"Right. I believe our partnership…"

"Partnership Nakahara? I was under the impression I was your prisoner, held hostage by my little secret" _Please don't make this difficult Ludenberg._

"I believe our relationship isn't ideal at this stage and would like to change that. Our co-operations will be much more fruitful if we can get along better. I'm willing to make compromises if that helps"

She places a finger on her chin and pretends to think "You could bang your head against a wall until the memory leaks out your ear"

"I don't think it works that way Ludenberg"

"No? I guess we'll maintain the status quo then"

Sigh. "I don't understand, what's so bad about Yasuhiro…"

"DON'T SAY IT. DON'T FUCKING SAY IT" Ludenberg snaps, leaning forward and violently pulling on my tie.

_Yikes. This is new. No one's around right?_

_…and she's afraid… as if me saying the name Yasuhiro Taeko would summon something unwanted…_

"OKAY OKAY, geez, anything but the tie" I said, raising both my hands.

Her smile quickly came back, "I'm glad we could reach an understanding"

_Was that outburst a controlled demonstration I wonder? Or was her smile just now a quick recovery? Either scenario seems likely for the Queen of Liars. Yes, such outstanding control and improvisation is why I simply must have her on my side. But she IS on my side, despite the attitude she puts up, so why am I not satisfied?_

_Let's try something more forceful,_ "We're not reaching any kind of understanding here Ludenberg"

"No?" a tilt of the head "I'd expect you to understand by now that there are volumes of information out there one should never learn"

"Any informant worth shit unlearnt that lesson long ago"

"Good informants must not live very long then"

_She's steering the conversation away from the real issue here, _"That's not important. I want to reach an understanding here Ludenberg"

"We all want lots of things Nakahara-san. You need not understand anything to have me on your side you know"

I let out a sigh "That may be so, but still… I don't understand…"

"OF COURSE YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND SHITHEAD. DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG IT TOOK FOR ME TO FINALLY GET IT RIGHT? DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH EFFORT IT TOOK FOR ME TO FOOL MYSELF AGAIN AFTER YOU MENTIONED IT?" Ludenberg snaps again, this time I have no doubt it's genuine.

_Get it right? Fool herself?_

_Celestia Ludenberg…_

_Yasuhiro Taeko…_

"A fantasy persona?" I asked.

She lets out an exhausted sigh "You're not dropping this are you Nakahara?"

_Progress? _"Unlikely, after I've gotten so close"

She was silent for a while, before motioning me to come with her. I decide to follow quietly_. I can finally see the cracks on her mask, the kind of game she is playing._

We eventually arrived at Ludenberg's room. She turns to me before opening the door "Can I trust your discretion Nakahara-san?"

I nod, _As long as you're not the mastermind Ludenberg._

She nods and locks the door as we enter her room. Ludenberg's room is as one would expect it to be, lavishly decorated, almost like a Victorian mansion. Ludenberg sat on her bed and quietly took off… her twin tails?

Sitting on the bed was a girl with clean short hair, pale skin, blank face, and eyes as red as those of Celes, but where there once was amusement and control, there's now only… indifference? Celestia Ludenberg would have embodied this room perfectly with her elegant extravagance. The girl sitting in front of me seems almost out of place. Even her dress looks as if it belongs to someone else.

"Yasuhiro Taeko. Pleasure meeting you Nakahara-kun"

"Nakahara Shiki. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Yasuhiro-san" _What the hell am I doing?_

Yasuhiro simply sits there, eyes staring. One may expect me to say she was waiting with expectations, but truth is, she was simply waiting, as if she would be okay with it had I simply stand here until the end of time. One may assume she is this way due to some kind of despair or depression over her fantasy persona being discovered for what it is. I doubt it. This is simply Yasuhiro Taeko, indifferent, unmovable, disinterested, always. She sits in a comfortable, carefree position, almost as if she's the only one in the room, looking almost sleepy with her eyes only half-opened.

For some reason, her face reminds me of someone I know, but there will be time for that later…

"I have to say, after all the fuss you made, I was expecting a lot more drama here"

No response.

"Okay… you don't mind me knowing about your fantasy persona?"

"I do"

"Well you're really not showing it…"

No response.

"Not one for small words are you?"

"No I'm not, unlike Celes"

"Aren't you Celes?"

She shrugs "I am. You're not talking to Celes though" _huh, that makes sense, somehow…_

"Fair enough, guess I'll get to the elephant in the room then, why the fantasy persona?"

"Taeko is a boring person" total straight face…

"…I beg your pardon?"

"Taeko is a boring person"_ she said it again, she actually said it again…_

I let out a deep sigh, "Yasuhiro, when people say 'I beg your pardon', they don't usually mean 'I beg your pardon'"

"Then they shouldn't say 'I beg your pardon'"

_Urgh… _"A fair point. Alright, let me give this another shot. Is being… Yasuhiro Taeko bad enough to justify going so far with a fantasy persona?"

"Probably not"

"…well then why did you? Also this isn't an interrogation, you can talk you know? I'm trying to get to know you better here"

"Because no one likes being boring. Yes I know I can talk, thank you for pointing that out, and you ARE getting to know me" _Snarky…_

"Fair enough… um… why do you think yourself boring?"

Another shrug "Lack of specialties, lack of any interesting traits, lack of any real dream, and in possession of the plainest face imaginable"

"Well you're pretty damn good at lying for what it's worth. You're more snarky than I am, and that's an impressive feat. I don't have any dream either." _amnesia you see so I'm not lying _"and I don't know, I think Yasuhiro looks pretty cute" _Bold, Shiki._

"…if you say so…" _foolish of me to expect anything else I suppose_.

Another awkward silence fills the room. At least it was awkward for me. I have a feeling if I stand here long enough she'll just pull out a book or a cup of tea to kill time or something until I leave. _You're difficult to deal with Yasuhiro…_

"So you're going to keep going as Celes?"

"I would hope so yes. Would you object?"

"Not if you're going to go all hostile on me again. Will our exchanges be more civil from this point on at least?"

"Our exchange **is** civil. Celes though, I don't know, it depends on her mood. It'll come naturally once I'm her again, we'll see. It would really help if you don't bring up this incident again"

"I guess that will have to do. Once I'm her again huh, you're certainly committed"

"Yes"

_This is getting frustrating…_ "You sure this is worth it? This is self-destructive you know"

"Self-destruction would be great if I can achieve it one day. You're not a boring person Nakahara-kun, you would not understand"

"Neither are you if you ask me"

"I didn't"

_…this woman…_ "Fine, whatever floats your boat" I put my hands up in defeat "Celes is pretty good at creating some sort of order in this whole mess and I hope you keep that up"

No response. _That's not a no right?_

"Well that's that, have a good day Yasuhiro" _that's pretty cold Shiki,_ "And please, take that mask off sometimes, lest you forget your own face"

"Forgetting my face would be a blessing"

"I'd rather not. It's a fine sight"

No response. _Well, no verbal response. Heh…_

She suddenly speaks as I was heading to the door "Take care Nakahara-kun. That Maizono girl in particular is unstable and Enoshima Junko shouldn't be trusted. Monokuma is likely to get frustrated and start pushing our buttons at some point. Also if I was him I'd plant a mole or two among us."

"Indeed. But what did you mean about Enoshima?"

"She's acting, I'd know"

"I suppose you would. She seems fine to me though"

"You would be forgiven for thinking so. She acts different around you"

"Huh… that's odd. I'll keep that in mind. Didn't know you cared Yasuhiro"

"The terms dictate"

I grin "Of course"

Yasuhiro furrows her brows at that "I'm not playing some tsundere character you know?"

"Heh… the icy mistress knows what a tsundere is? And I think that was closer to a coodere"

She actually thinks about this, tilting her head "Hmm… you think so? You might be right there"

_Super High-School Level Role-Player ladies and gentlemen._ I can feel my grin growing wider.

"…please leave Nakahara-kun…" _oh I think I found her buttons…_

"Haha… of course, of course" I open the door "You're more fun than you think you are Yasuhiro. Hope to see you soon" _and I do mean **you.** Celes is fine too but Yasuhiro is somehow intriguing in her own way _"Take care Yasuhiro"

A simple nod, but that's fine too.

_Well that didn't turn out too badly now did it?_

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Prepare for shits finally starting to happen next chapter.  
Reviews would be nice, thanks.


	7. Chapter 5

(I know I said I won't be responding to non-question reviews but since reviews are like gold dust to me at this point I might well ignore that rule for now)  
Kamilia07329: Thanks, glad you like it :). I plan on showing more Taeko (partly cuz I find her easier to write). To me it seems like one of the very few natural personalities she could have since whenever she appears (in both canon sources and fan arts) without her hair-clips on she always has that nonchalant or indifferent face on her.  
I also said shits will start happening but this chapter is much longer than I thought it would be so we're back to side characters and Shiki. Sorry about that, next chapter…  
Anyway, enjoy and leave reviews if you've got time.

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**Chapter 5**

"Good morning you guys! It is now 7:00 AM! Rise and shiiiine! Let's make today into the best day it can be!"

Bloody. Intolerable. Twat.

_Whatever, a new day, shits to do…_

Knock Knock Knock.

_Oh come on. It's 7 AM. I can't deal with this so early in the morning._

Knock Knock Knock Knock.

_Ugh fine,_ I grumpily open the door to find a face filled with a sickening amount of enthusiasm.

"Good Morning Nakahara!"

_Piss off Ishimaru._

"…Ishimaru"

"I hope you will excuse my intrusion"

_No, no I won't. _He barges in regardless. _This one better has a good excuse…_

"…Well?" I ask after a while.

"Keep your feet planted solidly on the ground and the harshest wave won't knock you down. Don't you agree?"

_I'm sure the harshest wave would just knock your torso off your feet. Hmm, pleasant thoughts._

"Yes Ishimaru" _now can you please leave?_

"If you can't hold out against the raging waters by yourself, then we need to support each other. In doing so, we can outlast the storm!" Ishimaru roars on with an unhealthy amount of vigor.

_If I can't hold out against the raging waters I would just ditch the place altogether Ishimaru._

"Yes Ishimaru" _now can you please stop talking?_

"Nakahara, I've been thinking about this since last night. I've come to the conclusion that we will need to strengthen our teamwork. To that end, every morning from now on I would like us all to gather for breakfast. Today shall be that momentous first day!"

_This early in the morning? Are you thick? Not everyone has that much energy. This will just likely just put most of us in a bad mood._

"Yes Ishimaru" _now can you at least stop shouting?_

"Meet in the cafeteria, posthaste! I will take my leave here! The others must be informed as well!"

_I suppose misery is more easily dealt with when it's evenly spread. I feel better knowing each and every one of my classmate will also suffer Ishimaru's obnoxiously loud prepared speech. _Such cheerful thought fills my head as I drag my feet to the cafeteria. _Let's humor him for now, I suppose this might be a good opportunity to see how the other students are taking the situation._

Oowada was the only one in the cafeteria when I arrived. _Me and Oowada, fuck's sake Ishimaru, you could at least start with someone less defiant or doesn't despise mornings._

"That asshat called you here too?" Oowada greets, irritated.

"Evidently" I reply with a frown. _Be nice Shiki, especially to the ones with serious anger management issues._

"Who the hell does he think he is, trying to tell me what to do?"

"He fancies himself our leader no doubt, which isn't an issue at the moment. We can always decide to stop humoring him if it gets out of hand. Beside, this may actually improve our chances at understanding our situation" _doubt it though. I already have Kirigiri on my side._

"Like I need this shit to help me escape"

I shrug "You're welcome to continue banging your head against the iron plates if you so desire"

"Tch" was all the rebuttal he had. _Bravado will only do you so much good Oowada. Please start learning whenever you're ready._ The others are starting to come in one by one. _About time…_

"So… what did you do before coming to Hope's Peak?" Oowada attempts to start a conversation after a brief silence._ My God Oowada, social skills, be careful lest you taint your delinquent status._

_Amnesia, tread lightly Shiki._ "What informants normally do: finding and selling secrets"

He snorts "Someone who can't keep his nose out of other people's business then"

"Oh I very much can Oowada. I simply choose not to. And why the defensive attitude? Any skeleton in your closet?"

This visibly scares him "Y-You're threatening me asshole?"

I frown "Oowada, do learn to hide your emotions sometimes, it'll help. And don't worry about your secret, I promise not to sell it unless it gets really really profitable. Heh heh"

Immediately, his hands reach for my collars, lifting me up a good few inches from the ground "I'VE HAD IT UP TO HERE WITH YOU, YOU CREEPY ASSHOLE"

_Stupid, stupid, stupid Shiki, baiting him like that. Should have gotten my coffee after all, this bad mood is getting in the way of my better judgment. _Most of the students in the cafeteria backed off immediately.

"YIKES. CALM THY WRATH MASTER OOWADA"_ that would be Yamada…_

"Oo-Oowada-san…" Fujisaki squeaks.

"L-Let him go Oowada" Enoshima shouts out.

I raise both my hands "Calm your tits Oowada! Just a joke! _(What? It was! I think…). _We were both Ishimaru's 'victims' no? Couldn't get my morning coffee so I was in a foul mood and jested in bad taste" _not appeased. Damn it I can't breathe properly. I'll need to do this quick. You're asking for it Oowada _"Fine, listen carefully, **Br…**"

"Oowada, put him down" a voice so calm it sounds out-of-place. _Kirigiri, no doubt _"Control yourself. Don't repeat the incident from the other day"

That actually calmed him down. Oowada slowly puts me back down. _My eternal gratitude Kirigiri. Resorting to his secret would not have made my relationship with him any better. _A rather awkward silence follows,_ might well take the high road now._

"Apologies friend. That was in bad taste. I'll try to be more sensible in the future" I offer him my hand.

He's clearly uneasy about this, but eventually takes my hand "Um… yeah… Me too, sorry about that" _Someone go make sure the sky's not falling._

_That's one hurdle out of the way._ I approach Kirigiri "Thanks Kirigiri, I owe you"

"I didn't save you or anything, although if you say you owe me I'll have to take that offer" _Yeah I would as well. _Before I can get back to my seat, she adds "Don't push their buttons Nakahara. They're already on edge due to everything that's going on"

_Yes mum. She's not wrong though, I'll need to keep that in mind._

Then the others arrived. Each student picked a seat, most do so reluctantly. Togami sits on a separate table, because of course he does. Fukawa simply stands near him, because of course she would.

"Excellent, everyone's here! Very well, let us begin the breakfast assembly right away!" Ishimaru started after the last of us arrived "Soldiers, I appreciate you taking the time out to assemble here this morning"

"I told ya to piss off, but you dragged me here against my will" Kuwata complains.

"I believe I mentioned this early, that in order for us to escape…" _and that's as far as he got before I begin eating my breakfast. Feel free to start talking about things that actually matter whenever you're ready guys._

"More importantly… Anyone here, like, found any clues?" _Good question Enoshima, about damn time._ "Seriously?! We haven't gotten anywhere?! Does no one have anything?!" _Some of us do Enoshima, but we noticed the cameras in the room._

"You will die" Ludenberg leans forward, eyes staring in her signature creepy way.

"We're all going to die at some point Ludenberg" I said. _Please let this not escalate further…_

"Maybe so but those laying bare their weakness for all to see, are the ones who will die first"

"W-What're you going on about?! I'm going to die? Give me a break!" Enoshima visibly flinches.

"Adaptability is survivability. I believe I said as much already? You must adjust to your new lifestyle, and soon"

"Girl, is there something wrong with your head? Adapt to this place, are you nuts?"

_Oh bollocks to this. My breakfast can be dealt with more easily than this mess._ Kirigiri is more interested in observing the students than calming them down. Ludenberg is having too much fun yanking on their chains. Naegi is being as passive as always. Togami is too busy not giving a shit. This breakfast assembly is faring no better than what I've expected.

"You've all heard of Genocider Syo right?" Fujisaki spoke up at some point.

_Heh? You heard that Fukawa?_ She bites her nail, a typical action for a school girl…_.or the killer herself._

"You're talking about the serial killer who's all over the internet?" Naegi asks.

"A villainous homicidal maniac with a brutally demented modus operandi" Togami explains "choosing his victims at random and without warning, even the police can't find a pattern. The internet has dubbed the suspect of these serial murder cases… Genocider Syo was it not?"

"Rumors say his victims number in the thousands, dude" Hagakure said.

"That's just a legend isn't it? In reality, it's just ten or twenty… which is still, like, a lot" Enoshima.

"Twenty-Six" I said, earning me blank stares from the other students "Twenty-Six victims. All males"

"How do you know that?" Enoshima asks.

"…did you seriously just ask me that?"

"Um… right, Super High-School Level Informant. So do you know who it is?"

"Nope" _Fukawa Touko _"He's quite elusive, despite his bombastic methods" _The police wasn't desperate enough, they would have paid more for the information if I wait. Also it would have been in bad taste to reveal a classmate's secret. Tee. Hee._

"It's all good! It's absolutely, positively, no questions asked, all good! Because help is on the way soon!" _Come on Asahina, that's right up there with 'what could go wrong?' _"I mean, it's been a few days since we were trapped in this place. If everyone just suddenly lost contact with us, wouldn't the police get involved?"

"DAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" a maniacal laugh, followed by Monokuma himself "You're holding out for the police? Do you guys know what the role of the police is? They're foils. For the evil organizations, the bad guys, the dark heroes. Without them, the bad guys don't stand out as much I know it's their job and all but I'm not sure you should count on a group with such a superficial role. Either way, if you really want out that bad, all you've gotta do is kill someone!"

This launches yet another meaningless argument. Despite his rambling, Monokuma still has not explained one thing: Why the police have not come to save us. They're not that competent for the most part but I will not buy the fact that they're dumb enough to overlook the disappearance of sixteen students of the most prestigious school in the country. Could Monokuma actually have enough power to control the police? Did something major happen outside? Are we not actually at Hope's Peak? Perhaps… the Iron Plates aren't to just keep us in, but to hide what's outside?

"…There's a distinct lack of 'motive'" Monokuma said something that caught my attention "Upupu, I've just gotta give you all some 'motive'! I have something I want to show you guys! A video from outside the academy!"

"A movie… of what's outside the academy?" Naegi asks.

"Teehee, you're so impatient! Save the fun for when you're watching! Ye scurvy dogs should be able to watch the movies if ye go to a certain place in the school, arr!"

"Then we should check it out right away" Kirigiri suggests "But before that, can I ask you a question? Who, exactly, are you? Why are you doing this? What is it you want from us?"

"What I… want from you guys?" Monokuma tilts its obnoxious head "Despair… that's all I want. Any more than that, you guys will have to find out on your own. Watching you guys frantically search for the truth will make for an exciting spectacle! Bears just wanna have fun!"

And he disappears, just like that.

_Despair? I don't understand… What does that mean… Despair… Despair… Despair…_

_No. Focus. Don't try to understand that demented thing. Right, back to reality, the videos…_

"Yo, Naegi! Go check it out for us would ya?" Oowada asks with a grin.

"Huh? Why me?!" Naegi replies, understandably nervous.

"You're standing closest to the door. So that's that"

Naegi looks like he's about to protest. I approach him before he could. "No reason why not right? I'll come with you too"

"A-alright"

"Sweet. Sounds good. We're counting on you two!" Oowada said, satisfied.

"Um… why did you decide to come with me Nakahara-san?" Naegi asks as we leave the Cafeteria.

"There's an advantage in getting information before everyone else Naegi, and you use every edge you can get in here. Since it's a video I guess we'll head to the A/V room?"

The rest of the walk was silent until we reach our destination. The A/V room is mostly the same as before, except…

"DVDs in the box, each one labeled with one of our names" I report.

"This has to be the 'motive' Monokuma was talking about"

_One for each huh. Motives. Outside world._

"Naegi. Go tell the others"

He nods and leaves immediately. _T__rusting fool. I'm sorry guys but as the Super High-School Level Informant, it's only natural for me to do this._

'…That Maizono girl in particular is unstable…'

_That one then, _I thought as I reach out for her DVD, _privacy means little when our survival is at risk, sorry Maizono-san._

The video begins by showing Maizono and her band performing on stage while a voice introduces to us who she is, nothing new so I fast forward the video. It then shows an empty stage, telling us the band has been disbanded for whatever reason, with a cheesy "Find out after Graduation" text appearing on the screen. _So that's what he meant by "motive"._

_Nothing good can come out of this, the girl is already on edge as it is, and this video will be the finishing blow. Perhaps it will be wiser to destroy the DVD? No, Monokuma is determined about getting one of us to start killing, and he's likely watching me this very moment. Chances are he'll just give her another DVD. Tch, nothing to be done now._

There may still be time for one more. Kirigiri is the odd one in our little group. I'm curious about Celes's. I was told not to trust Enoshima. Decisions, decisions, decisions…

Footsteps. _Well, so much for that._ I quickly toss Maizono's DVD back in the box and grab my DVD, pretending to look over it while waiting for them to arrive.

"Report soldier, what were those DVDs Naegi mentioned" Ishimaru said as the students arrive.

I give them an honest smile "Would have been rude of me to start the party early no? Now that we're all here, let's begin together"

_Heh heh, I'm a terrible person._

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As always, reviews would be nice. Next chapter is already written so I plan to upload that tomorrow.


	8. Chapter 6

Morli: Honestly now that I think about it I have no idea why I arbitrarily decided each chapter would be more than 1000 words and less than 3000. I think I initially wanted reviews on specific parts. I'll try to lengthen the chapters if it feels natural. I've more or less decided to change the murders at least a little, and I say 'at least a little' to avoid spoilers. It could means I've changed the murder completely or just the method or just the victim. Anyway, thanks a lot for the constructive feedback :).  
AnimesWorld: Thanks. Glad you like him. I've never played SDR2 (although I did spoil myself quite a bit since I was unable to resist looking at the wiki .) so I can't say anything about the Komaeda's comparison. I will say that he may get rather unstable and aggressive as time goes on so there's that to look forward to if you're the type who likes anti-heroes. I haven't planned how the trial will turn out yet (although I have a fairly firm idea as to how the murder will turn out) but I don't think my OC will make a lot of friends there so there's also that.  
Kamilia07329: Haha yes. I do feel like filling the space with some other characters every now and then but I'm really glad you like her :).  
This chapter was initially only going to be roughly 1500 words but since people say my chapters should be longer, I decided to merge this and the next one so this will end up being the longest chapter yet. Tell me how that worked out for you, enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

The students, being the naïve fools that they are, quickly grab their own DVD without any suspicion. I doubt I can take a peek at their videos without being spotted, shame. Oh well, let's see whether my "motive" sheds any light on my amnesia.

Unlike Maizono's, my DVD had no Video Footage, on the screen is a simple "Put on the headphones Nakahara-kun :)" and a countdown. There was a conversation between two people. One of them was definitely me. The other is unrecognizable due to his/her voice being modified beyond recognition. There were also sections that have been clearly been 'erased' to withhold certain information. _Obviously, wouldn't want to make this easy now would we?_

* * *

Shiki: Hope's Peak Academy is it?

?: *fizzle*

Shiki: Huh, you sure this is a job? Most people would pay fortunes to study there.

?: I assure this won't be a privilege. *fizzle*

Shiki: Right. So what do I do there?

?: *fizzle* When the time comes, you will protect your classmates, every single one. This is vital, *fizzle*. You will also accomplish tasks for me if I require it.

Shiki: Protect? But I'm an informant…

?: Any physical prowess will be of little use to you when *fizzle*. Your expertise in finding secrets and spreading misinformation will keep them safe.

Shiki: I suppose that makes sense. And what will my reward be?

?: *fizzle* You're scared *fizzle*, you hide it well, for hiding is your talent, but deep down you know you're just frightened, regardless of how you try to burry that thought. Do this for me and I promise, you will never be afraid again. *fizzle*

Shiki: …Yes. I believe you. You have never been wrong, *fizzle*. Flesh and blood is all we are, but if I can dispel this fear… I accept the job *fizzle*

?: Yes. Go to Hope's Peak, protect your classmates and complete any minor task I may give you. One more thing, from now on, your name will be Nakahara Shiki.

Shiki (?): Yes.

(Screen) What could this mysterious conversation mean? Find out after Graduation!

* * *

My head hurts…

'When the time comes, you will protect your classmates…' Did someone know this would happen? Was I sent to prevent any murder from happening?

'You're scared…' I am? I… suppose I am. There are too many things I don't understand, it frightens me. And there are others…

'You have never been wrong…' I know… knew the person. Someone I trust. Someone I trust? I don't know… I don't know…

'… from now on, your name will be Nakahara Shiki' What does that mean? Who am I?

Why did Monokuma show me this? He gave me this DVD despite having gone through the trouble of wiping my memories. What is he trying to do? A 'motive'? I suppose… I don't want to be afraid… No! One thing at a time Shiki. The others must not know. Tension is high. The students will be on edge. They won't trust me. My video is different from theirs. I need to hide this, fit in, until I can understand what my 'motive' really means.

I turn to the see how my peers are taking the situation. Most of their reactions stay rather consistent. Fear, anger, disbelief. Not a good sign…

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Maizono screams, storming out of the room. _Balls, it's happening._

"Just let her be" Togami suggests.

"I-I can't just ignore her! I'm going to go look for her!" Naegi says, rushing out of after Maizono.

Ludenberg frowns "Can't everyone just do as they please? The world won't end if we're not all marching in step. I, too, shall be doing as I please. Farewell…" She leaves. The others seem to agree. I suppose it's for the best. Roughly half the students disperse soon after. First thing first though, I approach Kirigiri. She's one of the two people here whom memories Monokuma feel were threatening.

"What was in yours?"

I see something on her face for a second, something resembling rage, or perhaps fear? It's hard to tell. "It's not important…"

"We agreed on things Kirigiri"

"And I suppose you will tell me what's in yours?"

_Fair enough. _"…no. Not now at least. Not here. I understand, I'll ask again later when it's appropriate" _She's still the most suspicious one here._

"Yes, that would be for the best… Perhaps I'll tell you one day"

"Perhaps. Take care Kirigiri. Keep your door locked tonight"

She simply nods. I doubt anyone else would be willing to share anything today, not that I'm interested in most of theirs, it's how they're taking these motives that matters. _Now, a plan, someone will be very, very tempted tonight. The first night is the worst. Let's be prepared._

I spotted Ludenberg as I was heading to my room. _I'm shooting for the stars here but still…_

"Any chance you'll tell me what was on yours?"

"Any chance you will?" She replies with a smile. _I've been here before…_

"He threatens me with my family's safety"

She simply turns away, smile unfazed, but somehow it seems a lot less pleasant. _Should have known better than to try pulling that shit with The Liars' Queen herself._

"It's not like I could have told you anyway Ludenberg. I don't understand it myself"

She turns around, looking momentarily confused "Could you say that again?"

"…what?"

"Could you please repeat what you've said Nakahara-san?"

"Um… I don't understand what exactly he showed me"

This surprises her "You're either telling the truth Nakahara-san, or you're a damn good liar. I'd much rather it be the former, competitions are growing for us liars you see" Then she leans forward in her signature creepy way "Tell me more"

_Dug my own grave right there. Might well, I have her little secret to use if she ever betrays me… though I'd much rather it doesn't come to that_ "A secret for a secret Ludenberg?"

"Fine, Nakahara. But I'll warn you it's not worth much" _Ludenberg actually looks… disheartened saying that. Or was that actually Yasuhiro?_

_Deep breath._ "You remember when I met you at the school's entrance? That, and every thought that crosses my head during that time, is all the memory I have left. I can't remember anything that happens before I come to Hope's Peak as well as, you know, everything that happens after. It is likely that Monokuma is responsible for my amnesia, but I can't really be sure. The video I got was simply a conversation between me and someone who hired me to come to the school to 'protect my classmates'. I do not know what this means exactly… so yeah…" silence follows. _Don't make this awkward Ludenberg_ "You're the only person here who knows that right now so I'd appreciate your discretion Ludenberg"

She lets out a sigh "You're in an interesting situation Nakahara, I envy you. Mine just reminds me of the shadow of that dull girl, but very well" and it's almost as if Ludenberg was replaced by Yasuhiro right then and there. It's a rather strange feeling. I could almost imagine her hair clips disappearing entirely "It was my family"

"…I beg your pardon?"

"It was my family"

_We went through this already…_ "Okay, what else?"

"Something happened to them"

"That's it?"

She shows a bitter smile "Yup. That's it. Not even my problem is interesting heh?"

_Master of Tact Shiki._

"Um… sorry"

No response. _Let's not go through this again._

"You wanna talk about it or something?"

"Why?" _Good question. Guess I'll just try being more direct._

"What was your family like?"

"Me"

"Eh… what does that mean?"

"They're as boring as I am"

_Of course she'd say that_ "Were you close to them?"

Yasuhiro just shrugs.

"Okay… I guess there isn't really all that much to go on"

Neither of us said anything for a while. "Tae-chan…" Yasuhiro whispers something, almost instinctively.

"…what?"

"Nothing"

"Tae-chan?"

She furrows her eyebrows "I didn't say anything"

"Hahahaha... I can just see it now. The doting parents and their little princess, Tae-chan, who is so sick of her ivory tower, she ran away and start adventuring. Heh heh, that's frighteningly plausible"

_It's frighteningly accurate, _her face seems to suggest (at least it does in my mind) "Leave me alone Nakahara…"

That made me smile, "Heh. I guess that's as cheerful as I can make you. That's that, good to see you again Yasuhiro. Take care" I turn away, before remembering something "Oh yeah, if you don't mind, can you go knock on my door before curfew?"

"Why?" she quickly reverts back to her deadpan face.

"I'll stay out all night tonight. Someone's bound to attempt murder after the whole 'motive' thing. I want to know which one to watch out for"

"Aren't you going to sleep?"

"I'll sleep now"

She appears to consider this, that is to say, she's completely silent for a while, eyes still staring. "I guess I can do that much" _What's there to think about? Although I think it disturbs me even more that she didn't even question me about breaking her own curfew rule._

"Right. See you Tae-chan ~" that earned me a frightening glare from her. Heh heh, _Yasuhiro is fun to tease._

With that over with, I head to my room in a slightly better mood._ Let's get some decent sleep, tonight will be a long night…_

* * *

Nakahara Shiki's (?) Notes – Day 4 (early) Report:  
Survivors: 16  
Facts:  
. Monokuma provided everyone (presumably) with videos concerning what happened (?) outside the school.  
. Maizono's video said her band disbanded for some reason.  
. Ludenberg/Yasuhiro's video was about her family.  
. My video was about a conversation I had with a person who (presumably) I knew.

Notes:  
. Monokuma says what he wants is despair  
. Most of the students reacted badly to their videos. Maizono's reaction was the worst.  
. My video implies (!) the following: I was sent here to protect my class; I know and trust the person who gave me the job; Nakahara Shiki is not my real name; I was (am?) very often afraid of something.  
. I'll need to be careful tonight. The students may act rashly.  
. I will stand watch tonight, here's hoping that doesn't get me murdered.

* * *

Knock Knock.

That would be Ludenberg. I open the door.

"Ludenberg"

"Nakahara-kun"

_Or not… That's Yasuhiro right?_

"Thanks" I leave the room, closing the door behind me "You can go back to your room now. Make sure to lock the door"

She simply stares at me, before handing me a book and a cup of coffee.

"…what's this?"

"A book, a cup of coffee"

_Not this again…_ "I see. Why are you giving me these?"

"It will be a long night"

_Good call. _"Heh. Should have thought of that. Thanks a bunch. This isn't something Ludenberg would normally do"

"Celes wouldn't" _Yup, Yasuhiro._

"More importantly, how did you get your hands on these? I haven't seen any book lying around"

"The coffee came from that the Monomono machine. The book came from Monokuma"

"…How did you get Monokuma to give you the book?"

"I asked him"

_That's… pretty impressive_ "And he just gave you the book?"

"He'd see more despair if he can get us to feel a false sense of comfort first"

"Ha! Sounds like something Ludenberg would say"

"She did"

"Indeed. Thanks again, I'll get through the night a lot better with these. Night, Yasuhiro" I said as I round the corner and sit down. This is a good spot. I will be out of sight to people coming out of their room but will still be able to hear footsteps. I'm rather proud of my hearing so I should be able to know if someone leaves their room tonight, although I would need to come up with an excuse as to why I was out of mine. Everything in order. I open the book Yasuhiro gave me. _Comic book? Huh… it actually looks pretty dark. Good call Yasuhiro_. I start reading while slowly sipping my coffee. _Wait a second…_

"What are you doing Yasuhiro?"

"Reading" and indeed she was, sitting at the opposite corner to me with a book of her own.

"Wrong question. Why are you out of your room Yasuhiro?"

"Because I can't stand watch in my room"

"Why are you standing watch Yasuhiro?"

"It makes more sense to have two people standing watch. We'll be less likely to be murdered out here, and I'll be able to make sure you don't use this opportunity to your advantage" She's saying all this without ever taking her eyes off her book.

_That makes sense actually. _"Fair enough, but what about sleep?"

"I slept"

"What if someone attempts to murder one of us?"

"I'll hide"

"What if you get bored?"

She waves her book at me.

"This will be a lot more effective if it's done in silent"

Yasuhiro looks straight into my eyes "You're concerned about **me** talking too much?"

"Point taken" _No sense complaining. After all, I like this a lot better than sitting out here alone in the dark _"Thanks, this means a lot. It's rather sweet of you, Tae-chan~"

She pulls something small and white out of her pocket and flicks it right at the middle of my forehead.

"Ouch! What the hell was that Yasuhiro?"

"Crumpled up papers"

"Wrong question, why the hell did you do that?"

"You were being stupid"

"You prepared a bunch of paper just for that?"

"Yes. I anticipate you being stupid a lot in the future"

"Haha. That sounds like something you would do Tae…" she reaches into her pocket"…ko Yasuhiro"

Yasuhiro gives me a glare but that's it. _Dodged a bullet right there. What a tsundere..._ I thought as I get back to my book. _This thing is pretty interesting actually…_

Footsteps. _It's happening already? _I signal Yasuhiro to keep quiet and peer around the corner.

Maizono was leaving her room, looking nervous. She slides a note under Kuwata's door after briefly checking the hallway (I ducked back around the corner obviously) before proceeding to knock on Naegi's door. Naegi, being the trusting moron that he is, lets her in.

"I told you she was unstable. You should have stopped her right there" Yasuhiro said as soon as we made sure the door was closed.

"We can't be sure what she's trying to do yet. That note she left was strange. I don't think she'll kill Naegi, at least not yet. Let's wait for now"

She nods, and we got back to our respective spot, waiting with our books out again. A few minutes later, Naegi leaves his room without Maizono, and enters her room using her key. Roughly ten minutes after that, Maizono enters the hallway looking even more nervous than before. She proceeds to swap the nameplate on Naegi's room with the one on her's before going back to Naegi's room, now with her nameplate on it.

"I see" I said, after making sure the doors were closed once more.

"They're not just switching rooms are they?"

"Doubt it, what with that note to Kuwata from before"

Yasuhiro sighs "The girl's quite sloppy. I can only imagine how many things can go wrong here."

"So who's going to deal with Kuwata? Assuming this is what we think it is"

"You do it" she gets back to her book, already bored with the whole murder plot.

Around half an hour later, Kuwata leaves his room, looking rather excited. Yasuhiro nods at me. _Fine…_ I thought, standing up and approaching Kuwata nonchalantly.

"Kuwata"

"NA-Nakahara-san. Haha, what are you doing this late outside your room?"

"I left something outside so I went to get it" I show him the book Celes gave me "Well what are **you** doing outside your room?"

He appears to think of an excuse, before giving up entirely "Haha… you got me" Kuwata scratches his head, whispering "Truth is, Maizono invited me to her room dude. You understand what that means right? You gotta let me in man" he has that boyish smile on his face. _If only you know what she has in store for you Kuwata._

"Heh. Congratulation Kuwata. As a fellow healthy young man I'll have to let you take up that offer…" his face brightens "…IF, you do me a favor"

"GAH. What is it?"

"Tell her Nakahara said hello. That's all. Let that be the first thing you tell her, and I'll let you go"

Kuwata seems confused "What the hell man? Do you know how weird that is?"

"No? I guess Maizono and you can't meet then. We all agreed on Celes's curfew you see" _not that she gives a toss about that._

"Ugh fine fine, I understand, I'll tell her"

_No, Kuwata, I don't think you understand. Let's try something else..._ "You had a party with a few friends a couple of months ago didn't you? My research told me that has been a rather… eventful event for you…"

All the blood drains from his face in a second "W-What are you talking about man? H-How do you know that?"

I smile.

"OKAY OKAY I'LL TELL HER, PROMISE" _Good enough._

I pat him on the back "Good man. Remember, first thing you say: 'Nakahara was outside and he said hello'. Have fun Kuwata" _your life may depend on this. You'll only yourself to blame if I find you dead tomorrow._

"Ugh… yeah… See ya" he said nervously as I enter my room. I get back out after a while and come back to my spot.

"Good job" Yasuhiro said, her eyes still on the book.

I nod, and just like that, we both went back to reading our books. My initial impression of her was right on the money, she picks the most bizarrely fantastic stuffs. I'm afraid I might be too immersed in this thing to be able to effectively watch out for sounds. This might be a problem. Now that I think about it…

"Why did you pick a comic book for me anyway?" I ask, curious.

"Because I got a manga" _that's her reasoning?_

"Would it not make more sense to also get me a manga?"

"You seem like the kind of person who would enjoy western things more"

_That somehow makes sense_ "You might be right. Maybe we can swap once we each finish ours" I peek at her manga "oh Christ you're reading some weird shits"

A crumpled up paper was flicked directly at my forehead. _She's really skilled at this. _I let out a small chuckle and get back to reading. Yasuhiro is really absorbed into her stuff isn't she? Her eyes are glued onto the pages and she reads very slowly. Occasionally she even turns back a few pages to see something again. So she likes this kind of stuffs huh...

"Why are you staring Nakahara-kun?"

"Um… no reason" _Real smooth…_

She frowns, "Do what you want, I don't really care"

"Super High-School Level Tsundere ladies and gentlemen"

Yet another crumpled up paper found its way to my forehead. _Haha, this is amusing._ This is a lot better than I thought it would be actually. The prospect of sitting out here until morning becomes a lot more bearable. Perhaps I wouldn't even mind doing this more often. Her presence really helps. _Really appreciate this Yasuhiro. _Well that's enough of that. I want to continue with…

…I hear a door opening. Yasuhiro's still reading her book, unconcerned. _Is she expecting me to deal with this as well?_ I peer over the corner…

…and something flies straight at me, wrapping itself around my face. _WHAT THE HELL? _It feels like a towel but I can't really tell for sure, it's blocking my vision. Footsteps, very, very fast footsteps. This person is dangerous…

"NAKAHARA!" Yasuhiro screams "Who…" Then there was only gagging sound. Something's happening to her. This thing… THIS FUCKING THING.

"Yasuhiro? What happened? ANSWER YASUHIRO!" I shout, fumbling with the thing on my face. Finally I got it off…

…and a hand reaches straight for my eyes, pushing my face down to the floor, once more blocking my sight. _Who is this? He's strong, and very fast. A murderer?_ I feel a hand on my neck, squeezing. _I can't breathe… is this it?_ The last thing I heard was the person clicking his tongue…

And then something hit my head…

And then there was nothing...

* * *

No one makes sense.

No one ever makes sense.

It's human nature. People are irrational, impulsive, incomprehensible.

I can understand secrets. Secrets are concise. I can categorize them, label them, use them, measure their worth.

But people, people are strange. I categorize and label them, but I know it's a superficial thing I do, for there are as many categories as there are people. I use them and measure their worth, but they hate me for it, despite them clearly doing the same thing to each other.

I don't understand them, and I don't think any of them truly understand each other, I don't think any of them understand themselves.

People scare me.

I'm a person, so that scares me too.

So I imitate them. Learn their way. Pretend to fit in. And I get by.

But I still don't understand.

Flesh and blood is all we are. So why can't I understand them?

But this is a dream so it's okay. Nothing needs to make sense in a dream. It's okay. I'm safe.

This is a dream right?

I don't understand. I'm scared.

* * *

I hear voices…

"SOLDIER, GET UP!" _that would be Ishimaru…_

"N-Nakahara-san…" _Fujisaki perhaps?_

"Rise and shine Nakahara" _that's Ludenberg._

"Hello" I said.

"Heh heh. You're the man here and you were out way longer than I was. What do you have to say to yourself Nakahara-san?" Ludenberg chides.

I shrug, still on the ground "Perhaps the culprit was being a gentleman to the lady"

"More importantly" Ishimaru jumps in "Explain yourself. Why were you two out here? What kind of deviant activities did you two participate in? I will not let this slide"

"We were here to check whether anyone would attempt murder tonight, after the whole motive thing" I answer.

"And any deviant activities we took part in is purely our own business" Ludenberg adds with a smile. _Don't listen to her guys…_

"And you didn't consult with the rest of us?" Ishimaru ignores Ludenberg, while Fujisaki is clearly flustered over her suggestion.

"So the murderous ones among us can hide themselves for a few more days?" I answer.

"I believe we all agreed on the curfew. In fact, you came up with it yourself Celes"

"That rule was made so that I can see who would break it" Ludenberg answers nonchalantly.

"You two did"

"Evidently" we both said.

"M-More importantly…" _words of wisdom Fujisaki_ "Why were you two unconscious?"

"Good question. Ludenberg, why were we unconscious?"

"My guess is as good as yours. The culprit grabbed my face and pushed it straight to the floor. Clearly a gentleman as you've suggested"

"I see. This might be a problem"

"Don't think you two will get away with breaking the curfew" _fuck's sake Ishimaru_ "I…"

Then there was a scream. _Yup, that's a problem._ We rush over to see what it was. Standing in front of Hagakure's room was Asahina, looking like she's about to vomit. "T-The door was opened. S-so I l-look" she mumbles, pointing at….

…Hagakure, lying on his back, his throat slit open, blood still dripping out. The room, in contrast, is almost completely untouched. Hagakure's face was one of mild shock, his corpse seems almost untouched. His death must have come quick. The killer must have been efficient. _Seems my effort was in vain. Today one of us died. But that's not what's important, what's important is, today one of us killed. The murder is among us, and with one death, he has one foot out of the school already.__  
_

_One of us killed. Someone here is responsible. There must be justice. I must have a name. Yes._

"Ding, Dong, Ding, Dong. HOORAY! We finally got a corpse! Gather in the gymnasium whenever you're ready boys and girls"

Ishimaru looks sick, our leader isn't so tough under certain circumstances after all. Fujisaki looks like he's about to cry, this one is predictably squeamish. Ludenberg looks worried, and perhaps a bit spooked, but mostly keeps her composure, the Gambler among us plays with her cards close to her chest. None of them said anything. What was there to say? Fact is simple. One of us died. One of us killed. One of us may be free. We can't have that. I won't have that. I feel nothing for Hagakure, he was just another student, but the culprit must pay. The culprit must die. Yes. That is just. That is how it must be.

_It was a sickening sight_… is what a sensible person would have thought. I, on the other hand, feel little. It's simply a body, we all die at some point, and if someone is to die first this one is as good a choice as any. No matter who we may be, how great we are, how much we care, we all arrive here at some point. After all flesh and blood is all we are.

_What the hell is wrong with me?_

* * *

First blood! (Yeah I'm a terrible person XD) This chapter was a lot longer than usual, for better or worse. Please leave reviews if you've got time.  
Expect next chapter to take quite a while.


	9. Chapter 7

Thanks for leaving frequent reviews guys, I really appreciate it.  
Morli: I love watching people speculate. Here's hoping the result surprises you. I'll say no more. I like the 'motives' suggestion for the final trial. I'll put them all in if they fit and I can come up with fitting motives for the all the survivors by that point. Thanks for the suggestion and the feedback.  
Kamilia07329: Oh yeah I've heard the demo killed Hagakure off. I haven't played it though so I don't know how much it will be like mine (I doubt it will be like mine at all, we'll see) but hopefully you'll like what I came up with. I'm always up for more Taeko whenever it's appropriate ;). Thanks again for the review.  
AnimesWorld: Haha yeah I usually dislike reading the kind of fics I'm writing as well. Thanks for giving it a chance by the way. It really helps. I plan on giving Fujisaki a bigger role once the next floor opens up so there's that to look forward to. I haven't decided who to kill off there yet though so we'll see. As for Junko/Mukuro, let's find out ;).  
Guest: Looking back, I feel like I copped out by killing off the comic relief I have no idea what to do with. The murderer sort of has a reason for killing him though so I thought why not, whether it's a satisfactory reason or not I'll let you judge for yourself when the trial comes. I like the idea of Hagakure being the mastermind, no one suspects the comic relief ;).  
Anyway, enjoy and leave reviews if you don't mind.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

"Ha-Hagakure-san is…" Fujisaki mumbles.

"Dead, yes" I reply "People tend to die when their throats are slit like that"

"Cold" Ludenberg comments bluntly.

"I know…" _No time for pointless sentiment though _"Ishimaru"

"W-What is it?"

"Can I count on you?"

He straightens his back. "O-of course Nakahara!"_ I think I found his buttons._

"Watch the body. Let the other students see it, then send them to the gymnasium. No one touches the scene until we hear what Monokuma has to say. Come once you've sent everyone"

He nods, slowly regaining his composure "Your judgment is sound Nakahara. I'll do it!" _I wish he would quit shouting everything he says._

"One more thing, and this goes for the rest of you too, do not mention my watch with Ludenberg last night. Yes, I know this makes us suspicious but I promise it will come up eventually regardless of whether you mention it or not"

"I do not know what you're trying to do Nakahara but I'll comply for now. Do not think I've forgotten…" _that's enough of that thank you._

"GOOD man, well I'll be off now. Ludenberg, Fujisaki, Asahina, let's go" we leave the room before Ishimaru can continue with his rambling.

The walk was silent for the most part. Asahina and Fujisaki don't look much better than before. Ludenberg seems to be carefully considering the situation. _There's very little doubt that the person who attacked us yesterday is the same person who killed Hagakure. It's likely, but that's not yet certain, an accomplice perhaps? Do accomplishes go free if the murder succeeds? Also, why was I and Ludenberg spared? Is it possible that the culprit was specifically targeting Hagakure? Unlikely, but let's not call it impossible yet. Could the culprit perhaps have deliberately chosen NOT to kill me or Ludenberg?_

"Someone killed one of our friends…" Asahina mumbles.

"That seems to be the case yes" _and he wasn't my friend._

"But who could have done such a thing? To murder another person in cold blood like that"

"Any of us could have"

She stares at me in disbelief "T-that's not true"

"Of course" _I have no time for this _"Here we are. Go wash your face Asahina, Fujisaki. I doubt anything Monokuma has to say will improve your mood"

They silently oblige. I and Ludenberg enters the gymnasium together. She seems to be fully in control of herself now. _Good, that's what we'll need._

"Who do you think did it Nakahara?" she asks.

"There were only two people who knew we were outside, but let's not decide on anything yet. More importantly, why are we not dead?"

"Good fortune perhaps?"

"Or the culprit was aiming specifically for Hagakure"

"I see little point in that. The man is as dull as a brick and twice as thick"

"True. Perhaps the culprit had a thing for me or you?"

"I have legions of men who would slit their own throats under my command Nakahara, but I don't convert people that fast"

"I know of no one who likes me all that much either." _to be fair due to my amnesia I only know fifteen people_ "Perhaps the person wanted to kill only one person and we were both out?"

"Possibly. But let's stop speculating for now shall we? Here come the suspects"

Maizono and Kuwata enters the gymnasium together, looking disturbed. _She didn't kill him after all. Perhaps… they're both in this together? Likely, Kuwata's status makes it very easy for him to throw that thing last night at my face, and being a seasoned sport player he should easily be able to overpower me easily. Maizono has no doubt prepared a weapon of some sort when she first attempted to murder Kuwata. That could explain Hagakure's slit throat. Why did they not kill me? Payback to how I saved his life perhaps?_

"You dare show your face!?" Kuwata shouts as soon as he sees me. _So much for gratitude_ "After what you did to one of us?"

"I'm sorry Kuwata, I'll try not to save one of us next time"

"THAT'S JUST AN EXCUSE! I was really thankful when I discovered what that was about but turns out it's just a distraction or a plan to earn my trust so you could kill Hagakure. WELL THAT WON'T WORK!" _World Class Genius…_

"There will be time for this later Kuwata-san" Maizono tries to calm him down "Let's leave this for now okay?" then she glares at me the same way he did. _Oh good, I was almost thankful for you there Maizono._

"Let's leave the murderous lovebirds to their business for now shall we?" Ludenberg suggests.

The other students eventually arrive, most of them were shocked or frightened. Togami and Kirigiri kept their poker face. They begin speculating about this and that, oblivious to the fact that the murderer is among us. The general consensus was (somehow) that Monokuma is responsible for the deed. _This has gotten too idiotic for me to handle, there's only so many neurons I'm willing to squander._

"What does Monokuma have to gain by killing one of us? He can murder everyone here this very moment if that's his wish. You're just deluding yourself if you think he's responsible. One of you killed, and that's that"

"Nakahara-kun, the voice of reason" Monokuma appears out of nowhere "I would not directly interfere unless a rule is broken. Y'all just can't accept the fact that any of you is capable of murdering another human being"

"He's lying yes?" Yamada asks.

"Of course he's lying! He's the one who did it" Naegi shouts. _What I said clearly fell on deaf ears.__  
_

_I don't have time for this_ "QUIET! It doesn't matter right now. We are under his mercy as long as we are here" I turn to Monokuma "What happens now? Does the murderer go free? Or is there more?"

"Now? Upupupupu. Now the fun begins. Now comes the second half of the graduation"

"Rule number six yes?" Ludenberg pulls out her ElectroID "'The villain who kills one of his companions will be allowed to 'graduate', **provided his crime is not betrayed to the other students**'"

Monokuma goes on to introduce the trials. Basically, during a trial, we must discover who the killer is, and vote. If the majority vote is correct, the killer is executed, and things go on as before. If we are wrong, the murderer goes free, and the rest of us will be executed, adding another fourteen students to the culprit's body count.

_This means two things. The culprit probably has a lot more work to do than he initially thought, and only __**one**__ of us will go free if we play by his rules. The killer then, will not only kill his victim, but will also indirectly kill the rest of us if he succeeds in the trial. BUT, this also means the next murderer, if we survive this trial, will be a lot less tempted to go through the murder. A lot more blood will be on his hand and the trial will pitch him against all the remaining survivors._

"Quit your blabbing! Even if you threaten me, I'm still not participating" Enoshima shouts. _Not good, he has already proven that he means business, and as much as I'd love the other students see a proper example, sacrificing Enoshima wouldn't be worth it._

I instinctively put a hand on her shoulder "Drop it Enoshima. Don't convince yourself that we are in any position to bargain. Do whay he wants for now and maybe we'll live through this"

"But, like, why do I have to go with this stupid trial?"

"Because he says so. I assume you'd prefer to live no?"

She looks like she's about to protest, but eventually gives up, "Fine, we'll humor him for now"

"There you go, great Monokuma. We are under your mercy. Please tell us what to do next"

Monokuma seems amused "Ohohoho. It seems we have an obedient student. You have a bright future ahead of you young man. ANYWAY, yes, the trial, I have something to give you guys before you start your investigation. Here's the Monokuma File, containing all information concerning the victim's death. All right then, best of luck with your investigation!"

"Wait" I stop him.

"Hmm? What is it Nakahara-kun?"

"What if the murderer has an accomplice?"

"Ah. Accomplices don't get to go free, only the murderer himself will. Whoops, forgot to mention that one. Teeheeheehee. Anyway, I'm out. Do whacha gotta do. I'll be seeing you again at the Class Trial!"

And he disappears once more,leaving the students distrust from the first day quickly comes back. The students are once more fearful of each other, wondering which one among us could have murdered another human being. _MURDERED another human being, it sounds like the worst thing in the world doesn't it? It really isn't. If you look at the corpse we have right now, you'll see it's a simple thing. A simple slice, and his life leaked out of him, all done within no more than a few seconds at most. You should all be fearful, look how easily one of us died. Look how easily one of us killed. There's a wolf among us, and fear is one of the few things keeping you safe right now._

"Are you all going to repeat that first day again?" Kirigiri speaks up "We need to figure out who the killer is. If we don't, all of us will be executed. To that end, we should work together"

"Precisely. It's time to begin the hunt" Togami says with an unhealthy amount of excitement.

"First thing first" I interrupt "We must preserve the crime scene. The culprit is among us and he can destroy any evidence left behind while 'investigating'. Any volunteer?"

"I'll do it" Oowada suggests "I'm no good at figuring stuff out anyway"

"Good, one more"

"Huh? Why?" He asks, irritated already.

"Let's not risk having the culprit on watch" Yamada and Oogami volunteered "Good, that's dealt with then. I'll take my leave. Good luck to you all"

I open up Monokuma's file as I walk out the room.

. Victim: Hagakure Yasuhiro  
. Time of Death: Approx 0:30 AM  
. The corpse was discovered in the middle of the victim's own room  
. His throat was slit open  
. His neck was broken

Killed after midnight, it seems very likely that he was attacked by the same person who attacked me and Ludenberg yesterday. That still leaves the question as to why I was spared but one thing at a time Shiki.

* * *

**Investigation**

**Murder Scene**

Kirigiri is checking the corpse in the same casual manner a person would check out a cereal box with.

"Anything out of the ordinary Kirigiri?" I ask.

"No. The Monokuma File seems accurate. His throat is indeed slit and his neck is indeed broken. His clothes seem relatively clean too, despite his collars being soaked with blood. No sign of struggle and his toolbox is unopened" Kirigiri answers without ever taking her eyes off the corpse.

"Throat slit open huh? Monokuma gave us boys toolboxes. Did he give you ladies anything to slit other people's throats with?"

"I doubt what we got can cut someone's throat this well"

"A knife perhaps? Did you check the kitchen?"

"Yes. A knife was indeed missing from the kitchen"

"Seems we have a rather sloppy culprit then. He didn't even bother putting back the knife?"

"The cafeteria is closed off at night but let's not jump to conclusion"

"Fair enough. I'll leave you to this then"

"What happened last night Nakahara?" She asks suddenly. _There's the elephant in the room._ "Kuwata has been going on about how you were outside last night"

I crouch down next to her and whisper "Me and Ludenberg were standing guard outside to see who would attempt a murder after the whole motive thing. Someone attacked during the night and knocked us out without us ever discovering the culprit's identity"

"You know this raises a lot of suspicion toward you two right?"

"Then let's spread the suspicion out a bit. Maizono attempted to murder Kuwata yesterday. I saved him, sort of. But point is, they knew I was outside, although I don't know whether they realized I was actually standing guard"

"I'll definitely take that into consideration. Thank you Nakahara. I don't suppose you have any other information that may help?"

"Nope. I can't imagine anyone having a grudge against Hagakure, he's pretty damn normal for the most part and nothing in his profile really stands out. I don't know anyone among us who would do this either, slitting someone's throat so efficiently" _There's Genocider Syo but it's obvious this isn't one of her works _"Kuwata and Maizono, who are my prime suspects, have nothing in their profile that suggests them being capable of this, although that does not mean they can't pull this off. I'll provide you with information during the trial if I think it's relevant."

She nods.

"…You know you're pretty calm about all this"

"So are you"

"Fair enough, best of luck Kirigiri. And I'd appreciate you not telling anyone about what I told you unless it's necessary"

* * *

**Dorm Hallway**

There's absolutely nothing in the hallway that indicates we've been attacked last night. Obviously no sign of the thing that was fling at me to block my vision. The attacker left no clue to go on. All I know is that the culprit is very physically capable, so Oogami, Kuwata and Oowada fits the bill, if I am to resort to stereotypes.

"Why weren't we killed Ludenberg?" I ask after giving up any hope of finding clues about our attacker.

"I believe we went through this already. Can't we just call it good fortune and move on?"

"That's just sloppy…"

"Nakahara-san, sometimes there isn't an answer to your every question. The sooner you learn that the better you will sleep at night"

"If you say so" then I notice something.

"Why are you staring Nakahara-san?"

I lightly reach for her neck. Ludenberg gives me a questioning look but otherwise raises no objection. I press my finger and she flinches in pain. _Huh… that looks pretty cute actually… Focus Nakahara!_

"You've got scratch marks on your neck"

She lets out a sigh "Sensitivity, Nakahara. You may want to try it when dealing with girls"

"Um… sorry" I reach for my own neck "Yup, it's here too"

Ludenberg smiles "Seems our attacker **got rough** with us. Would you like to check whether any other part of our **body **has also been **violated**?"

"…Please don't get creepy with me Ludenberg"

"Ehehehe…"

* * *

**Kitchen**

I was just about finished with checking out the missing knife when a pair of hands covers my eyes from behind.

"Guess who ~"

"Hifumi Yamada" I feel the hands slowly tighten on my eyelids "…please stop hurting me Enoshima…"

"Bingo!" Enoshima cheers "By. The. Way. Nakahara-kun~"

"…yes Enoshima?"

"What WERE you doing outside last night with your lady friend?"

"…who did you hear that from?"

"Kuwata has been banging on about it ever since the investigation started. You know the other students suspect you now right?"

"I'll fix that at some point"

"Ha. Tough guy. But more importantly," _more importantly?_ "I was under the impression you were bad with girls Nakahara, yet you scored Celes of all people in only a few days. Are you sure you're not, like, the Super High School Level Pimp or something?" _That's quite a title…_

"I assure you I intended to stand watch alone"

"Oh my, Celes took the initiative then. That's even more impressive"

_Oh bollocks to this. _I put my hands on her shoulder in an over dramatic fashion"Enoshima-san, as much as I would like to impress you further with my sexual prowess…" _of which I have little to none._

She looks at me with feigned embarrassment "Y-Yes?"

"I'VE GOT SHITS TO DO!"

* * *

**Murder Scene (again)**

Having run out of options, I went back to Hagakure room to double check whether someone found anything interesting while I was away.

"Oogami"

She nods.

"Aren't you supposed to be inside, guarding the scene?"

"There is no need. I would be able to sense it if something suspicious is to happen in there"

"That's… pretty impressive, though you sure that's enough?"

"Nakahara-san. I could hear your breathing when left the cafeteria"

_That's bloody scary_ "Um, right. I guess your hearing will be sufficient then. Anyone found anything new while I was away?"

"Not to my knowledge"

_That's that I suppose…_

"This is abominable Nakahara" she says suddenly.

"Didn't think you were the squeamish type Oogami"

She shakes her head "It's neither the blood nor the violence. It's the lack of respect for the victim. Hagakure clearly died within seconds, unaware of the killer's intention before his last breathe. And the killer showed no respect for his corpse, leaving him where he lies"

"Would you have done any different?"

Oogami stares with me, judging "Would you?"

"Of course. There are countless ways the corpse can be used to mislead the others. I can fake a suicide, draw suspicion toward another student, damage the corpse to the point where the others will be unable to pinpoint the cause of death. Leaving the corpse like that, it's almost as if the culprit wants to be found"

"You seem to be the exact kind of person Monokuma would want here. That's almost detestable"

I shrug "When in Rome, do as Romans do. I won't apologize for adapting in order to survive, and I won't look down on anyone who refuses to compromise even when faced with death"

She considers what I said "You say that knowing the students already suspect you. Your heart is cold Nakahara, but you speak your mind, that's commendable in its own way"

"I'm not a trusting person, but you may be the most trustworthy one in here, so I'm glad to have your semi-approval" _also I only speak my mind half the time Oogami. There is wisdom in keeping secrets, I'd know._

And then the time came.

DING. DONG. DING. DONG. "Ahem, I'm getting tired here… Let's get started shall we? It's the event you've all been waiting for, The Class Trial! Without further ado, I'll now announce the rendezvous point! Please enter the red door on the first floor of the school zone. Upupu, see you soooon!"

* * *

**Courtroom Foyer**

"About time, murderer" Kuwata glares at me as soon as I arrive "Don't think you'll escape after killing one of us in cold blood like that!"

"N-Nakahara-san couldn't have done it could he?" Fujisaki says.

"Big words, considering what happened last night" Ludenberg replies.

"Maizono was just panicking!" Kuwata shouts "We talked it through. She was HURT! We all saw how much her DVD affected her" _Oh yes we did, you really think that's helping her case? _"So don't you dare bring it up again!"

"G-Guys?"Naegi is understandably confused "What are you talking about? Why Maizono?" Maizono quickly looks away, _figures._

"Unlike a certain someone, I can be discreet." I say "But once the trial starts, Maizono, once the trial starts…"

"NO!" she is clearly frightened "NO! Not with him in the room, not now. Please, I didn't do it! I didn't go through with it!"

Naegi seems both tempted and scared to ask what that was about. Kuwata looks like he's about to leap at me and bite my face off. I give Maizono no false assurance.

"Let's not be at each other throats until the trial start no?" Kirigiri suggests.

Monokuma suddenly appears on the nearby monitor, "Upupu, you're all here? In that case please board the elevator at the front of the room. Upupu"

So we did, and the elevator descents.

Fifteen students descended, and either one of us goes free, or fourteen will ascent again. Fair game, we all do what we must to get what we want. But there are fourteen of us, and one of you, so there's only one thing to do. Your death will sustain us, until the next murder. You see, you aren't the wolf here, you're the lamb, and we just need to find you…

…lest we become the lambs ourselves.

* * *

That was a lot longer than I thought it would be. Feel free to review and speculate.  
Next chapter is written so I plan to put it up soon.


	10. Chapter 8

AnimesWorld: I did mention (very briefly) that he has fairly short and clean black hair and pale blue eyes. He wears a trilby and a tie (you can fill in the rest for now) because he's into that kind of stuffs. In my mind he also dresses entirely in black and white clothes with a few pale blue here and there to matches his eye color. As Celes has mentioned, Mukuro's acting (or is it?) gets significantly better around Shiki so one would be forgiven for thinking she's almost identical to Junko. Anyway, glad you found this chapter enjoyable :). Also. nice song, I can see the connection :).  
Morli: I suppose that's true, I can think of very few clues from Chapter 7 that will point to the actual killer. I'll try to address this issue in future chapters. As for going over the canon parts, I don't think I'm very good at weaving descriptions into the middle of dialogues right now. That and it will be a bit weird if the protagonist knows exactly what kind of facial expression the other students are making (although I do admit it would be in his nature to observe a few people closely during these parts). I skipped over the explanations in the game pretty much because I think it will be tedious going through them again so I thought a bit of flow can be sacrificed to not waste the readers' time, but I'll definitely consider your suggestion. Thanks a lot for the constructive feedback. I'll try to improve these parts in future chapters.  
Jin-Rimu: Thank you :).  
Anyway, enjoy this chapter. I'm only starting to write the trial for the first time here so do expect it to be a bit rough around the edge. Please leave feedback if you've got time, thank you.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

"Yohoho! You're finally here" Monokuma greets as we arrive, sitting on a throne that reeks of bad taste "How 'bout it? Is this truly the courtroom as you imagined it? We're talking about Hollywood-level realism here! Please find the seat with your name on it"

Our spots are arranged in circle for obvious reason. There are seventeen seats, fifteen for each of us here, one for Hagakure, had he been alive, and one empty one, for the mastermind? We all arrive at our seat, and the atmosphere immediately become heavy. No doubt this is what Monokuma had in mind when he designed this room. Each student eyes each other cautiously, ready to leap at the first sign of suspicion. Naegi or Oogami would no doubt look at this atmosphere in disgust. But this, this suits me, this makes sense, this is my nature. Let the hunt for the lamb be a sporting experience. Nothing wrong with enjoying what you're good at.

"Let's start off with a simple explanation! You guys' votes determine the trial's outcome. Finger the true villain, and only the villain gets punished. But make the wrong accusation, and everyone else gets punished, leaving your deceiver to graduate, free and clear! Welp, that should do it for the intro. Let's get this party started!"

_Yes, let's._

"Let's go over the facts first" Kirigiri starts off "Today, Hagakure Yasuhiro was murdered in his own room"

"Killed right at his doorstep, assuming his corpse wasn't moved" Togami adds.

"We found nothing suggesting such thing so for now…"

"Why are we even discussing this?" Kuwata, being the level-headed young man that he is, cuts in. "It's clear that the only possible culprit is Nakahara. He was the only one outside last night"

"Yes" Ishimaru says "You broke the curfew that ensures our safety Nakahara-san. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"One, we don't know that I was the only one" I reply before the others could bring up Ludenberg, _not yet…_ "There were complications last night so I can't be sure whether anyone leaves his room after midnight. Two, Kuwata, I spotted at least **three** people coming out of their rooms yesterday"

"We did not… wait, three?"_He doesn't know about Naegi? Heh heh heh…_

"Oh? Mai. Zo. No. Chan?"

Maizono, being the level-headed young woman that she is, begins panicking immediately "I-I didn't tell… please… I didn't do it. It doesn't matter. They don't need to know"

_That's not your call Maizono_ "Yesterday, after curfew…"

"NO!" Maizono shrieks. Kuwata looks confused. Naegi seems a bit scared. Kirigiri and Togami listen with interest. Ludenberg watches in anticipation. I speak loud and clear.

"…Maizono left a note for Kuwata, presumably to invite him over to 'her room'" Kuwata raises no objection "Soon after, she and Naegi switched room. Maizono then switched the nameplates of the two rooms. Judging by the look on their faces right now, I'm pretty sure neither Kuwata nor Naegi is aware of this fact. I made Kuwata reveal my presence to Maizono, which probably explains why he's still alive"

Kirigiri quickly processes the information "Maizono switches room with Naegi after inviting Kuwata over so she can pin his murder on Naegi. Is that what you're saying?"

"Maizono?" I turn to the girl in question "Kirigiri has a question"

She's breaking, I can see it "I had to find out what happened to… a-and I didn't go thr…"

_That's enough of that _"Yes, apparently that's it"

The whole courtroom casts its judging eyes on our little idol. The students begin to whisper and what I hear about her isn't kind. _As much as I'd like to say I feel sorry for her, I don't. We reap what we sow Maizono, and beside, better they cast their suspicion on you than on me._

"Seems our little idol is in a bit of a predicament" Ludenberg giggles.

"Maizono… what a whore!" Fukawa whispers.

"M-Maizono-san attempted m-murder." Fujisaki stutters.

Naegi is predictably in denial "She would never do something like that! Tell them Maizono!"

Kuwata has a nervous smile on his face "I didn't hear anything about this. There's a perfectly valid explanation right?"

The girl herself has nothing helpful to add "I'm s-sorry. I'm sorry. I was…"

"ENOUGH!" Togami shouts "I don't care about any of this. What does this has to do with Hagakure's murder? You can waste your own time trying to figure out who betrayed who later. The only thing I care about is finding out who the murderer is. SO GET TO IT!" As idiotic as that was, you have to give it to the Togamis for their almost peerless display of authority. The entire courtroom goes silent in seconds.

Kirigiri seems to agree with the sentiment at least "Fair enough. Back to square one then. Hagakure was found dead with his throat cut open…"

"There was a knife missing in the kitchen" Naegi speaks up, having already somewhat recovered from his shock at being betrayed. _That is an impressive skill, perhaps he'll be more use than I thought._

"Then we have our murder weapon." Ishimaru says "Does anyone know who has the knife?"

"We have a witness on that front. Isn't that right, Asahina?"

"Huh?"Asahina is surprised at being addressed all the sudden.

"You told me yourself. The knife disappeared while you were in the kitchen right?"

"U-um yeah"

"Is there, perchance, another who could confirm that?" Yamada asks.

"I" Oogami says simply.

"Last night, I was in the cafeteria drinking tea with Sakura the entire time. The knife was there when I came to the kitchen to prepare tea but when I came back to clean up, it has already disappeared" Asahina explains.

"And you have no idea how the knife disappeared?" I ask.

"I… may have an idea" _Well? Out with it woman. _Asahina glances around nervously before continuing "…Maizono-san… went in the kitchen while we were there"

All eyes were immediately on her once more. Maizono looks frightened, and she should be, the situation grows worse for her by the second. The entire room stares in silent.

_Might well get to the elephant in the room _"So… You retrieved the knife yesterday in preparation for Kuwata's murder…"

"I…" Maizono stutters.

"…but after the plan failed, you refused to give up…"

"But…"

"So you snuck out during the night to kill someone else"

"No…"

"You, one of the few who knew I was outside, attacked me and proceeded to murder Hagakure right at his doorstep" She has nothing to say. "Am I getting this right?" No response. "Did you murder Hagakure?" Nothing. "Did you cut his throat open?" Still nothing. _My patience is running out _"SPEAK!"

"I didn't do it!" Maizono screams "Kuwata was there! He stayed in my room all night. I'm sorry for what I tried to do, but I didn't kill Hagakure! Please, I don't want to die… I don't want anyone here to die because of my failed murder… Please, I didn't do it"

"Kuwata… THAT IS UNWHOLESOME! A MAN AND…" Ishimaru says.

"QUIET!" I shout "You could have sneaked out during the night"

"Bastard!" Kuwata objects "How dare you suggest…"

"All of you be silent!" Togami demands "Kuwata, Maizono, what were you doing last night?"

"I calmed her down and we just sat on the floor and talked" Kuwata answers quietly, something I was previously convinced is an akueb skill to him "Eventually we both fell asleep right on the floor, leaning against the wall..." _Enough with the romantic details Kuwata..._

"How can you claim to be each other's witness if you were both sleeping?" Kirigiri asks the obvious. They had no answer.

"Maizono…" Naegi starts hesitantly "You admit you swapped my nameplate with yours?" she nods "Then how come this morning my nameplate and yours were in the right place?"

"What? But I didn't…"

Togami cuts in "Since Naegi and Kuwata claims to know nothing about the nameplates switching places, you must have left the room to switch them back during the night"

"But I didn't…"

"You're only digging yourself a deeper grave." he crosses his arms and turn away "Monokuma, I think we're done here"

Monokuma claps his tiny hands in anticipation "Righto! Since you're sure…"

"WAIT!" Naegi shouts "We're missing something. Here, in the Monokuma File, Hagakure's neck was broken. We still don't know the cause of that"

"His neck was broken when his corpse his corpse hit the floor." Togami dismisses "What else is there…"

Kirigiri thinks otherwise "No. He's right. Remember, only his collar was stained. The rest of his clothes were otherwise spotless"

"I-If his throat was slit when he opened the door, the blood would have dripped down right?" Fujisaki says.

_Yes. Then that means… _"The broken neck was the cause of death. His throat was slit **after** he was on the floor, already dead" Naegi concludes.

_A set up? There's no reason for Maizono to not use the knife _"If that's true, someone made it so that Hagakure seems like he was killed with a knife, incidentally Maizono also has a knife. Someone also swapped the nameplates back to its original spot, something only Maizono would have cause to do."

"Someone's trying to pin the murder on Maizono!" Kuwata points out, embarrassingly proud of finally being able to protect his little lady friend.

"Heh heh" Ludenberg giggles "Sweet justice isn't it Maizono-san?" Maizono only looks down in shame. _Yeah that's a better idea than digging your own grave with every word that comes out of your mouth, lady._

Kirigiri ignores her "Someone knew about the plot. Someone framed Maizono"

Suddenly, the spotlight's on me once more. _Oh… right._ "The shoe is on the other foot now I suppose, um… I didn't do it?" Ludenberg offers no help. _Fair game m'lady, I might do the same in your shoes._

"You'll have to try harder than that. You were the only one who knew about Maizono's plan" Togami says.

"Right, let's see… I was attacked by someone and passed out before Hagakure was killed. Ishimaru and Fujisaki can confirm that much"

Ishimaru seems hesitant to back up the prime suspect "I… found him on the floor. I don't know whether he was faking it or not" _Thanks a lot Ishimaru. _Fujisaki also keeps his silent. _I'll remember the unrelenting support you've shown me today guys._

"Oh come on. Hagakure died around midnight. You expect me to stick around until morning if I had been the murderer?"

"You needed to stay outside yesterday to know about Maizono's plot" Kirigiri says "The 'attacker' provides a decent excuse as to why you couldn't spot whoever killed Hagakure, which would have made you even more suspicious."

"Ugh, that's a pretty good point actually. Let's see… I have neither the strength to snap his neck so quickly nor the tool to cut his throat like that?"

"And you expect us to believe you without proof?" Togami says "You were quick enough to pin such efficient murder on Maizono. We can't know for sure how physically capable you are, and we do not know whether you are already in possession of something capable of cutting someone's throat. Besides, there's no reason for your supposed 'attacker' to not kill you on the spot…"

_Yes… yes that explains it _"Perhaps this right here is the reason I'm still alive. Perhaps I'm alive because the murderer needed someone else to pin the murder on in case you discover that Maizono was innocent"

"A likely story. Without a witness to…"

Ludenberg finally speaks up "I was there. Nakahara speaks true. He and I were both attacked during our watch. Ishimaru and Fujisaki can at least confirm that I was there" they both nod.

"And why did this only come up now?"

"Nakahara-san has just offered a promising explanation to prove my innocence. Without it I'd just end up looking suspicious without offering anything helpful"

_This should clear things up_ "I can confirm that I wasn't attacked by Ludenberg, and she can confirm that I was attacked by someone else"

"Then we're out of options" Enoshima says "We have no one else who knows about Maizono's plan…"

"No" Kirigiri interrupts her "Someone here knew since the beginning" she casts her sight on Monokuma.

"Huh? Me? I thought we agreed that I have no reason to involve myself directly" Monokuma says.

"Yes. But you have cause to push for the first murder. The students will be a lot less hesitant to kill once they see first-hand what goes on after a murder" Monokuma has nothing to say "I think that confirmed it"

"But then any of us could have received clues from Monokuma" Oogami says "Any of us could be the killer in that case"

"O-only the ogre could have pulled off such a murder... knocking out two students before proceeding to snap someone's neck like that..." Fukawa suggests.

"Yes... Ogami does fit the bill. I would push the most physically capable one among us as well" Yadama says.

Before Oogami can say anything, Asahina leaps to her friend's side "Sakura would never do anything like that! She was in my room last night."

"Again, she could have sneaked out while you were sleeping" Togami suggests.

"The noise I made last night would have woken Asahina up, although the rooms are sound-proof" I say.

"No" Naegi says "The doors lock themselves if you close them, so if Oogami-san had closed the door, she would need to get Asahina to wake up and open the door again"

"So that's that!" Asahina shouts "Sakura is innocent, she would never kill someone like that!"

Oogami is silent the whole way through, but I think I see a hint of a smile on her face.

The students are silent once more, desperately searching for clues as to who could have received information from Monokuma during the night. _Someone here was tipped-off… Someone here knew things he has no way of knowing. I must go through everything I found out during the investigation… yes… yes I see _"Ishimaru, Fujisaki, Asahina, Ludenberg, Kirigiri, did you all do as I ask? Did you not tell anyone what happened this morning?" they all nod. Checkmate… "Enoshima, what did we talk about when we were in the kitchen?"

"Um… I was asking what you were doing with Celes…"

Kirigiri picks up immediately "How did you know Celes was outside?"

"Come on, surely even you heard Kuwata…"

_Yes, that's it _"Kuwata believed I was the only one outside last night Enoshima" he nods. "Enoshima, show me your hand" She hesitantly spreads her fingers out for all of us to see. Five, long red fingernails "That explains this" I point at the scratch marks on my neck. Ludenberg smiles and does the same. "Enoshima, anything to say in your defense?"

"Huh? You think a model like me could kill someone that efficiently?"

"I will not be misled by stereotypes Enoshima" _beside you're the one I have the least information on right now _"You've shown multiple subtle signs of physical aptitude now that I think about it. So, Enoshima, now that you have the spotlight, what have you got to say?"

Enoshima doesn't show any clear sign of fear, even with the entire courtroom's gaze on her. This is strange. She suddenly sticks her tongue out at us "Guess ya got me then"

"What?"

"Guess. Ya. Got. Me. Then~"

"So you admit it?" Oowada asks "You admit you murdered Hagakure?"

"Yup"

_Something is off. She's accepting defeat too easily. _"What kind of deal did Monokuma strike? Are you a mole he planted? Answer Enoshima!"

"Nothing like that I'm afraid. I want out and Monokuma presented a good opportunity."

Ludenberg flashes a smile "You're a bad liar Enoshima"

"Everyone's a bad liar next to the Liars' Queen herself" Enoshima shrugs, although I can see a hint of fear at last, as if she's scared that her performance was inadequate "I guess you were right Celes, I'll die pretty early on it seems"

"Why Hagakure?" Kirigiri asks, being the pragmatist that she is.

Enoshima just tilts her head "I guess… someone had to die and he was the one who was the least likely to survive all this. I don't know, it could have just easily been anyone else but you know… If I fail you guys should at least have the competent people to deal with the other trials"

_No, no that makes no sense. Why would she kill the useless one? I would have gotten rid of the smart ones to ensure my crime stays in the dark. What's going on here?_

"Why did you do it Enoshima?" Asahina asks the most inane question imaginable "Was the video that bad? Would your freedom be worth our lives?"

Before Enoshima has a chance to answer, Monokuma cuts in "TIME OUT! This is getting way too boring guys, so let's just get it over with. Let's begin the ballot time! Please cast your ballot using the switch in front of you!"

This should be fairly straightforward now that the culprit has shown herself, but it still bothers me. _Did Monokuma simply pick one of us at random, or did he deliberately pick Enoshima? How did a Super Model end up knocking out two healthy people before proceeding to snap someone's neck within seconds? Too many questions, my head hurts, something is off. Something is definitely off._

"Ohoho. That's absolutely correct. The villain who killed Hagakure Yasuhiro was Enoshima Junko!"

"Guess that's it for me" Enoshima says, looking rather nonchalant for someone who's about to be executed.

I sigh "I don't suppose you will tell me anymore regarding why Monokuma picked you?" no answer, _that's that I suppose_ "Guess we'll have to work on that ourselves then. Good bye Enoshima, shame you had to die so early. I feel like we would have gotten along quite well"

Enoshima seems quite surprised and for a while is at loss for word. She quickly grins, no doubt to cover up something "That's so unlike you Nakahara. I would have expected you to say something along the line of 'The culprit must die. An example must be made'. At this rate you'll be on your knees begging Monokuma to spare me before I know it" _even I can tell at least half of that was not genuine. I see what Ludenberg was talking about now. She's not a very good actor._

I shrug "The culprit must die. An example must be made"

"Haha. That's just like you Shiki"

"Shiki?"

"Welp, that's enough of that thank you" Monokuma shouts "Let's get this punishment started! Everyone's waiting! Let's get the ball rolling! It's punishment time!"

_He's trying to hide something_ "WAIT!"

Before anyone can respond, a chain appears out of nowhere, wraps itself around Enoshima's neck and pulls her into the darkness. We quickly rush after her, only to run into a glass window blocking our passage but doing nothing to block our view.

Enoshima is in a dimly lit room, filled with shambling mask-wearing mechanical mannequins. There is a door in front of her and so, lacking any other option, she approaches it. The mannequins seem to not be attempting to harm her, although that doesn't make them any less unnerving. _Is there a unique execution for each of us I wonder? If so what does this say about Enoshima's general psyche? I'll never find out now. _Eventually Enoshima reaches the door, and grab the doorknob without hesitation. As soon as she opens it, a mask, similar to the ones on the mannequin, jumps out and wraps itself around her face. She lets out a surprised yelp, trying to pull it off. We can see red gas immediately leaking out of the mask. Enoshima desperately claws at her mask, while letting out continuous muffled painful screams. The others watch in horror, some even fruitlessly try to break the glass. I'm definitely not the squeamish type, but it's painful to watch even for me. _Is she surprised? She seemed to have accepted death before. What's going on here?_ When it finally seems clear to her she's not getting out of this, Enoshima screams out things, except this time it actually sounds like she's trying to tell us something. It's all for naught though, the mask made sure we'll never get anything eligible. Eventually, she collapses, the mask finally breaks off, and the students gaze in terror.

Her face was red, wrinkled and look nothing like something that belongs to any human being, an ironic state for the Super High-School Level Model. Her veins are visible, the gas somehow made her skin thin and fragile, among the numerous other excessive damage it did. Her eyes are discolored and I can see blood dripping out of them, and for a second I imagine tears somewhere in there as well, but we'll never know now. Blood are also coming out of her nose and mouth. Whatever poisonous gas Monokuma used, it gave Enoshima Junko an excessively painful death. Does he plan the same for us I wonder? Or was this exclusive to Enoshima and we'll get our own unique death? Both possibilities are equally terrifying.

But why did Enoshima struggle in her final moments when she seems fine with death seconds before? Was it just the pain, or something else? The screams from before, it wasn't just pain. It was confused, lost, desperate. What happened? I don't understand any of this. How did a super model pull off yesterday's murder so efficiently? Why did she accept death so easily? What made her change her mind? Why did she act so familiar with me? So many questions, and the only lead we have is now a lump of meat on the floor. She could have told us so much. Enoshima must have had an intricate personal story that answers all my questions. We might have even been friends. It doesn't matter now, I thought as I stare at the lifeless, disfigured corpse that used to be Enoshima Junko. We all end up here sooner or later. Flesh and blood is all we'll ever be. Flesh and blood is all she is now.

* * *

I know there will be unanswered questions and I plan to address quite a few in the next chapter, which will be another short vignette that takes someone else's perspective. Here's a hint for those wanting to attempt to answer the questions immediately though, while they're probably impossible for the characters to figure out at this point, the audience should be able to figure out most of them.  
I know some people have told me they liked Mukuro and I feel sorry for killing her off like this but honestly, I don't think my story can go where I want it to with her alive for a long time. She does get one more chapter, although I won't promise it'll make people happy, considering how it all ends.  
Anyway, thanks for reading this and I'd very much appreciate reviews.


	11. Chapter 8 - Intermission

AnimesWorld: I thought he certainly looks cold. I imagine him to be the Lawful/True Neutral type though so I'm not really sure about looking insane. I can definitely imagine him with weird tastes. If he has to have a picture of something on his clothes it'd be something weird and out of place like a birdcage or a creepy bunny, don't ask. Really though I only described him briefly so you can imagine Shiki to fit your image of him ;). Most of your questions will be answered in this short chapter. I imagine Monobear was never going to kill Enoshima there anyway so what Shiki did was not really necessary, that was just sort of a red herring. Of course Maizono suits Kuwata, that's indisputable ;). I haven't read Dangan Ronpa IF so my knowledge of canon Mukuro basically boils down to the wiki page. I like intelligent ladies though so theoretically I'd probably prefer Kirigiri but who knows really. The chapter after this will be the last chapter of Canon Chapter 1. Thanks for the long review :). Nice song again, I can definitely see why it'd fit Mukuro.  
Kamilia07329: Her execution is sort of a metaphor for her inability to understand her own emotions as well as her poor attempt to play Junko's part. With the number of red herrings I've thrown out I'd a bit of a failure if everyone has gotten the culprit right on the first go ;). Thanks for the review :).  
This chapter is a bit shorter than recent ones and is meant to clear a few things up. Enjoy and leave reviews if you don't mind.

* * *

**Chapter 8.5 **(Mukuro's POV)

**Day 1:**

**School 1F Hallway, Morning:**

I arrive at the first floor as the entrance to the second floor closes behind me. Deep breath, chin up, straight back, and follow orders.

Head to the school entrance. Fit in. Wait for orders.

It happened. The World's Most Despair-Inducing Incident has happened. We caused it, together. We're all responsible for it. So much death, so much despair… But Junko was so happy, and if my sister is happy… if my sister is happy, I'm happy. This is right, it must be. We're family. Siblings make each other happy, no matter the consequences. The inferior serves the superior. Junko knows best. Yes, nothing is wrong… nothing is wrong… This is only natural…

Head to the school entrance. Fit in. Wait for orders.

I hope she keeps Naegi-kun and Shiki alive. I have little doubt Naegi is fine right now, his amnesia aside. He and the others pose her no major threat. But Shiki… Shiki, she has cause to kill. Shiki is dangerous to her plan. She did promise me she would… but little sister promises many things, little sister promises too many things. I must check. I must make sure.

Head to the school entrance. Fit in. Wait for orders.

I see Naegi-kun as I peek into the classroom. Shiki is likewise safe, lying in the storage room. They're sleeping, so peacefully, so harmlessly. And when they wake I'll be with them again. Yes, Junko kept her promise this time, thank you sister. I'll definitely keep my end of the bargain. This is alright then, as long as they're alive, I'm fine. I'll be fine. Junko has kept her promise. Everything will be alright…

Head to the school entrance. Fit in. Wait for orders.

* * *

**Day 2:**

**Cafeteria, Morning:**

The students have somewhat already adjusted to the daily routine here already. Good, this is good, Junko won't be pleased but this is fine for me. They should live as normally as they can, after all we've went through. I spot Naegi-kun and Maizono on my way to the cafeteria. They seem somewhat happy and greet me politely as I pass. I force myself to do the same. Why is he with her? Why is he with that treacherous back-stabbing BITCH!? Calm down and fit in Mukuro… Calm down and fit in…

As I enter the cafeteria I see Shiki with his head on the table. This is usual procedure for Shiki's mornings but something else is bothering him this time. He would definitely want to be left alone right now, but as he has always says, we all want lots of things. Beside, he'd never admit needing a bit of support every now and then. I approach him. I am Enoshima Junko, he is Nakahara Shiki, I can play this part.

"Morning Nakahara-kun"

No response. Of course there wouldn't be. You have to be more forceful with him during these times.

**"GOOD MORNING NAKAHARA-KUN!"**

"…good morning Enoshima…"

Heh heh, that sounds just like him. This feels right. Perhaps things wouldn't be so bad.

* * *

**Day 4:**

**A/V Room, Morning:**

"Would have been rude of me to start the party early no? Now that we're all here, let's begin together" Shiki says, leaning on a nearby table. I have little doubt he has already taken a peek at at least one video. That is his way. I just hope he didn't look at mine. Junko would probably stop him if he did but if he somehow... there would be complications.

Junko is giving the students a push. Each one apparently gets a DVD concerning what happens (or, happened, if your memory isn't wiped) outside the school. She told me nothing about this, but that's only natural. Junko knows best, and I'll simply do as she asks. I just wonder what would be on mine, since my memory is still intact. I quickly grab the DVD with my name on it and head to a nearby machine. I put on a pair of headphones, plug the disc in and random disaster-esque images flash through the screen.

Junko: Wus SUP big sister? This is a recently created pre-recorded message so please don't bother answering. Also the generic disaster images on the screen has nothing to do with the actual message so don't even pay attention to that, I just took 5 minutes to google random pictures to put together in case someone takes a peek. SO, anyway, to business then. You see, I'm so, SO, glad you decided to join me in my epic quest for despair sister, but there's a conundrum. You see, You. Are. The. Fucking. Worst. Actor. Ever ~. You don't look like me, your talks are highly stereotypical, and you let personal attachments affect your behaviors too much. I simply cannot have that sister. This. Must. Be. Fixed. But don't worry ~, I know how you are, you can't even put on proper clothing without having someone else to order you to do so. So, as always, I'll take care of it. Hold tight big sister, I promise I'll take care of this, like I always do. Just give me a day, See you soon ~.

Junko is displeased… JUNKO IS DISPLEASED! I'm useless after all. She took years to put this plan together and I just fucked it right up. Useless useless useless useless useless USELESS USELESS USELESS! Can't even play my dear sister's role right. Can't do anything on my own initiative. Can't let go of previous personal attachments. Junko is always right, I'm fucking USELESS!

Give me another chance little sister. I'll fix something on my own for once. I can do this without help. But Junko's gone now, gone to fix my problem herself. Because I'm as as active as a brick, twice as thick and thrice as dull.

* * *

**Day 4:**

**Enoshima Junko's (Mukuro) Room, Midnight:**

"Rise and shine Big Sister!" Junko's cheerful face flashes on a nearby monitor "Let your jaw hits the floor in awe because I've figured out the perfect solution for your little issue!"

I immediately get out of bed and rush to the screen "Yes Junko? I'll do anything!"

"Yes! That's the kind of enthusiasm the other students need. Alas, some of their enthusiasms are direct in the exact opposite direction but oh well, that can always be fixed!"

"Yes, just tell me what to do sister. I won't disappoint you again!"

"GOOD girl. You see, to my pleasant surprise, Maizono attempted murder just a while ago" _treacherous back-stabbing whore _"alas, Shiki-kun, being the proactive young man that he is, foiled her plan. So we're back to square one. For a while I considered making use of the mole but then an idea came to me. Why not kill two birds with one stone? **You **can be the murderer tonight. Just make sure you get caught in the end, we don't want the game to end this soon"

_What? _"But… wouldn't I..."

"Oh don't be such a brick. Of course the execution won't kill you. I'll fake your death and simply take you to me after that. Enoshima Junko ends up 'dying', I don't have to watch any more of your horrible acting and we'll be together again, would that not be grand?"

"But… murdering a friend…"

Junko's face immediately twists in disgust "Oh fuck off Mukuro. How many people do you think we've killed so far? How many do you think **you**'ve killed when you were off fighting for that fenrir group of yours or whatever? And now your little sister asks you for one more, personally, and you…"

"NO! I'LL DO IT! Just tell me who to kill. I'll do it for you!"

Her smile immediately comes back "That's what I'd like to hear. Now, Shiki is out there in the hallway with Celes…"

_Shiki? _"I… I don't have to kill him do I? He was kind to me. I don't want to murder him. Please, someone else..."

"Oh come on, I thought Naegi-kun was your man Mukuro. Try being a little more faithful, sister"

"You know they're different…"

She grins devilishly "Of course big sister. I kid. Anyway no you don't have to kill him. I actually would prefer it if you don't kill him yet. I'm just telling you because they're out there checking out who's going to attempt murder tonight so you should at least watch out for them"

"Ah. That's easy then. I can neutralize both of them without them ever discovering my identity" I quickly take off my tie, _now if I can find something somewhat small and heavy to tie to both ends…_

"That's the professional killer I'm looking for. So you're going to kill Celes then?"

"Can I not? Shiki seems quite fond of her and I'd hate it if someone killed my Naegi-kun as well"

Junko just laughs, _did I just say **my **Naegi-kun?_ "Haha. Of course of course. Kill whoever you please. Also to make this not obvious, make sure you swap the nameplates on Naegi and Maizono's room. Bring a knife as well"

_The nameplates are no doubt a plan of hers that someone like me would never be able to comprehend but the knife? _"I can snap someone's neck with my bare hands within seconds, why bring a knife?"

"Just do it Mukuro. You can kill however you please, just remember to use the knife at some point. Don't leave it on the scene though. So who are you killing?"

"Maizono" I said without a second thought.

"Got it. Just so you know Kuwata is with her right now so you'll end up killing two people but that's hardly an issue for you I'm sure"

_That whore… _"I guess I won't go for her… I don't hate anyone else so I think I'll just kill the one who's least likely to survive all this"

"Suit yourself big sister. See you later~" and just like that the screen turns off.

I open the door after my preparations are done, my improvised weapon in hand, no doubt they heard me. I quickly start running. I see someone's peeking around the corner and immediately throw my tie at him. It flies like a bullet and, as intended, wraps itself tightly around his face.

"NAKAHARA!" Ludenberg is at the other corner. I immediately speed up, shove her face straight at the floor and knock her out before she has a chance to see me. Shiki is finally starting to get the thing off his face.

"Tch" _Apologies Shiki, I'll get a bit rough. _I quickly grab his face and knock him out as well. That's the witnesses out of the way. Now, the victim. Hagakure then. I walk to his room, knocking on his door a few times. The poor sleepy man didn't even question me as he proceeds to open the door. _Sorry Hagakure, Junko needs someone dead._ I grab his head within seconds and snap his neck in one swift movement. I don't think he ever figure out what happened. The knife then, I crouch down next to his corpse and cut. _That will do, now the nameplates._

* * *

**Day 5:**

**Execution Chamber, Evening:**

The trial is done. They've figured out what I did without little to no help from me. That gives me hope, perhaps they'll live through this. Junko pulled me into the chamber probably because I was saying too much at the end, but that will be the last time sister. With this I won't be a burden anymore. I'll be with you soon sister.

There are shambling mechanical mannequins around me, each wearing a mask of some sort. Is this Junko's metaphor for my transparent acting I wonder, or my inability to understand even my own emotion? This is scary sister, take me away from this place, I don't want to be here. I walk on, soon…

I reach the door. I'm here. Sister will take me away from this horrible place. We'll be together again. I reach for the handle… soon…

A mask jumps at me and wrap itself around my face. Get it off! It hurts… it hurts… what is this sister? Why am I not with you? Why does this hurt so much?

"SURPRISE!" the mask speaks in Junko's voice "You did a fairly good job back then, had you not start running your mouth at the end there. Anyway, just want to say, you've been a great tool, I mean sister, to have around. Ahh, the desperate ecstasy on your face… I wish I were you right now big sister. I envy you. Well, whatever, you deserve a reward for your obedience anyway. I'll see you again soon, bye bye ~"

Sister, don't leave. This hurts. This hurts so much. I can't breathe. My eyes are burning. Help, anyone. Why? Why do I have to die now? Why this gas? Why the pain? You promised sister… you promised… It hurts, sister, make it stop… make it stop…

Is this… despair? Is this what you were trying to show me all this time? Perhaps… perhaps I can understand it now… Despair… Despair… Perhaps this is what you were talking about… Despair… the ecstasy… maybe I can get used to this… maybe… Despair… Flesh and blood is all we are, so…

No… I don't understand sister… it hurts… I'm scared… I don't know what's going on… make it stop… please…

Sister… please, make it stop… it hurts so much…

* * *

Depressing wasn't it? So that's it with Mukuro, apologies to anyone who liked her (I did as well). No getting around it though, sucks being Junko's sister.  
Next one will be the final chapter of the first chapter for the canon story. I've written most of it so that should be up in a day or two.


	12. Chapter 9

AnimesWorld: Basically I imagine him to be the type who dresses in presentable, 'sophisticated' or 'classy' attires but that's just my image of him. If you want a clearer description from me, I imagine he looks somewhat like young Walter C Dornez from Hellsing but again you can just fill in the blank yourself. If someone's being depressed then I think that last chapter did its job ;). Yeah I can definitely see why someone would not be too fond of Kirigiri (honestly I think the alternative of having her killed is worse but that's another topic). Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check out Dangan Ronpa IF sometimes if it's in English. As for Mukuro's relationship with Shiki, that's going to be revealed at some point so I'll have to stop myself from throwing out spoilers. If I have to come up with an excuse now I'll say she is excessively attached to her sister to the extend where she would forget everyone else at times, also she's not used to receiving help from other people? (Really though I just didn't think about it that way, my bad really) For the second question, the mask has a speaker attached or something but doesn't do much without Junko's input. You'll find out more about the DVD this chapter (I still haven't ultimately decide what to do with it though). Thanks a lot for the long reviews, it's really motivating :).  
So here we are, the end of the game's first chapter. Don't expect major plot leaps, this is mostly a brief conclusion to the first trial. Enjoy and review.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

"Yahoo! That was Extreme!" Monokuma yells. "I'm drowning in adrenaline!"

I ignore his rambling and crouch down next to the body. _Yup, definitely dead, a lump of meat and nothing more. Flesh and Blood. Perhaps… perhaps she deserves more respect than this. Perhaps I should learn more about Enoshima Junko. It won't do much to a corpse but still… someone should know. Beside Monokuma is hiding something._ Perhaps a key to her room would shed some light. I begin searching the corpse…

"Oi oi oi oi!" Monokuma yells "What're you doing Nakahara? I didn't realize you were into molesting corpses! Now, while I respect students' right to get off on dead women, I can't allow that kind of behavior in the school!" I ignore him. There's no rule against this, he can't do anything yet. The key… just a little more… "Ah. I see the problem. Nakahara-san, from now on none of you shall touch the culprit's corpse without my permission. That is law! Now stop getting off on dead women in front of your classmates Nakahara!"

I stand up, putting my hands into my pocket. The key feels safe and warm in my palm. "Haiz… Shame too, I was finally starting to get to the good parts." The students, the dumb ones, give me disgusted looks. _Tch, I need no approval from the mentally inept._

"Phew" Monkuma breathes in feigned relief "it's all fine as long as there's no straight up penetration Nakahara, but seeing that we have a Super Model here I didn't think you would have been be able to resist. Anyway, since your brain still works, unlike those of the others here, I don't think I'll need to repeat what I told them. So that's that. Good night guys. Try not to start murdering again so soon, let's spread the excitement out a bit yeah?" and then he was gone.

"With that unpleasant business over with, let's call it a day" Kirigiri suggests.

_Let's not. _"No. We have unfinished business" I gaze in Maizono's direction "Attempted murder, something has to be done."

"But she didn't kill anyone in the end. Isn't that alright?" Naegi immediately leaps to her defense, being the two-legged lapdog that he is.

"I think not. She has proven herself unstable and fully willing to murder. Order cannot be retained with her walking around. Something **will** be done"

Maizono has nothing to say.

"I agree" Ishimaru loudly supports me, _probably because I said the word 'order' _"We can't simply let this slide. There must be consequences."

"Yes" Togami agrees "I will not allow dangerous things to wander around freely."

"But what do we do?" Asahina asks "We definitely can't kill her and it's not like we can put chains on her or something"

"We could break both her kneecaps" I suggest. The other students don't seem very amused. "I kid. I kid. Let's not resort to violence no?" _Guess that idea's out the window…_

"Um… Perhaps we can take turn supervising her…" Fujisaki kindly suggests before Kuwata proceeds to rip out my intestine and start feasting. "It won't really hurt her a-and we don't really need all that much work. Just have Maizono be near someone at all time."

"A splendid idea" Kuwata predictably agrees "I volunteer…"

"Oh no you don't." Togami quickly retorts "No one stupid, incompetent or sloppy. And someone who isn't Kuwata or Naegi"

"What? Why?" They both yell.

"You've both proven to be exceedingly useful puppets for our little idol here you see." Ludenberg explains "So please leave this job to the grown-ups yes? To that end, I volunteer." _Interesting…_

"What are you planning Ludenberg?" I ask playfully "I expected this task to not be worth your time. What kind of game are you playing Queen of Liars?"

"Adapting to a place such as this requires a friend is all. Beside Maizono seems like she needs a friend's support, so I'm simply providing out of pity for the poor girl." _A spotless lie. _Maizono mumbles something along the line of 'thank you' but I doubt she believed it either.

"I volunteer as well" Kirigiri speaks up "It is unwise to have only one person guard her at all time. We'll take shifts."

"That's fine by me." Ludenberg agrees.

"Let's have one more just to be sure. You." Togami points at me.

"You're handing her to him!? After his abuse during the trial?" Kuwata yells. _It wasn't actually abuse…_

"Precisely **because** his abuse" Togami flashes a sadistic smile. ..._Was it really abuse?_

I just shrug "Why the hell not? No objection Maizono?" None. "Right then, so every half a day we switch. Ludenberg, Kirigiri, then me. And if she is to leave her room to go anywhere during the night, she has to come get one of us first. Agreed?" No one raises any objection. _That's that then._

We get in the elevator. Fourteen of us ascent. One lies dead below, one above, (if his corpse hasn't been moved yet). It seems we'll live, until the next murder. We'll live because one of us died, Enoshima Junko died. A life for fourteen, a good bargain. _Is this right? Is one life worth less than fourteen?__ I don't know, but it's not important anymore. I'm alive. We're alive. Until next time... next time..._

"I'm sorry" Maizono suddenly says. _Of course you are Maizono _"…for… you know. For everything"

Kirigiri is clearly not satisfied "You owe them more than that Maizono"

Maizono nods and takes a deep breath "Naegi, I'm sorry for framing you like that, for abusing your trust, for keeping you in the dark even after my failed attempt. Kuwata, I'm sorry for trying to murder you, for leaving out details in fear of making you hate me even more, for accepting your forgiveness in the first place. Everyone, I'm sorry for nearly causing all your death, for being selfish, for trying to hide my sin even to the last minute." She bows deeply. "I'm sorry. I know things will not be the same again, but I want to at least say that much" _Quite a speech._

Naegi and Kuwata just stands there, scratching their head in embaressment and mumbling things along the line of 'it's alright really'. Asahina and Fujisaki come up to give Maizono a warm hug. Oogami and Kirigiri both nods with a hint of a smile on their face. Most of the others seem to take her apology quite well. Togami just snorts. Ludenberg seems amused. I'll reserve my judgment.

The elevator arrives and we each head to our room in a slightly better mood.

* * *

Everyone should be asleep by now. I leave my room, Enoshima's key in hand, and quietly walk to her room. The key fits perfectly, I open the door and enter.

Enoshima's room looks nothing like a room that belongs to a Super Model. It contains a bare minimum of things required to get by. No make-ups, magazines or extravagant furniture. Instead I find books, water bottles and canned beans. The 'standard weapons' Monokuma gave us is untouched. Instead I find an army knife inside her drawer, perfectly clean and sharp. _She took great care of this thing._ _Why would a super model own something like this?_ I quietly take the knife, _this might be of some use_.There is little else in the room that is noteworthy. Except… inside her bin, I find a DVD. _This must be her motive_. I take it as well and quickly leave the room. _Monokuma either thinks these aren't all that important or is currently sleeping. Perhaps I should have gotten someone to distract him. Nothing to be done now._

I return to my room, put the things away, and lay in my bed. Sacrificing Enoshima, looking through her things, discovering anomalies about a dead girl, this whole business is leaving a bad taste in my mouth. I'm just tired now. Perhaps when sleep finally takes me, my eyes will never open again. Just drifting through life until my heart stops. That'd be a blessing wouldn't it. Perhaps if I wish it enough it'll eventually come true.

Fat chance.

* * *

Nakahara Shiki's (?) Notes – Day 5 Report:  
Survivors: 14  
Facts:  
. Monokuma reveals that after a murder, we would have a few hours to investigate. There will then be a trial, in which we must then figure out who the murderer is.  
. If we fail at the trial, everyone except the culprit is executed. The culprit goes free.  
. If we succeed at the trial, the culprit is executed, everyone else continues living here.  
. Maizono attempted to murder Kuwata and frame Naegi. I stopped her plan by alerting her to my presence using Kuwata.  
. I and Yasuhiro were attacked by Enoshima (presumably) but were left alive.  
. Enoshima murdered Hagakure. Snapped his neck and slit his throat after in order to frame Maizono.  
. After the trial, we've agreed that Ludenberg, Kirigiri and I will take turn guarding Maizono so she doesn't attempt murder again.  
. I've taken the key to Enoshima's room. I've taken from her room an army knife and a DVD, which is presumably her 'motive'.

Notes:  
. Monokuma may or may not have a unique execution for each of us (I think he does).  
. Enoshima's execution was excessively painful. Is Monokuma just sadistic or is Enoshima special?  
. Something is definitely off about Enoshima and Monokuma. There are too many unanswered questions. Perhaps her things will shed some light.  
. Enoshima is definitely unlike a super model. She is physically capable and ruthless, judging by how she pulled off today's murder.  
. Maizono has proven to be unstable and unreliable under pressure during the trial.  
. The students' psyche after the first murder and trial is worse than before but things aren't out of control yet. But another one may push many of them over the edge. We'll have to be careful. Drastic measures may have to be taken. We'll see.

* * *

So that's that. With 'canon chapter 1' over, maybe you could leave your thoughts of the whole thing up to this point? If not a regular review will do, thanks.  
I've written nothing about the next chapter so that may take a while.


	13. Chapter 10

AnimesWorld: Okay then. I'll find time to read it during my school holidays. To be fair Junko has to sleep at some point. Shiki could also be a simple freelancer hired by someone who foresaw the whole thing, or maybe he's there serving his own goals, or maybe his importance in the whole thing is just an illusion Junko created to mess with someone's head ;). Maybe Shiki is indeed a SHSL Spy, I mean if he was a spy he wouldn't introduce himself as such no? I don't know what to do with the knife yet honestly, Shiki wouldn't do very well in a fair fight (that's why any fight he starts will be an unfair fight ;) ). If you put Shiki and Junko together they'd probably scheme each other's death every second of the day and Junko (and maybe even Shiki) would freaking love the romance of it all :). Obviously they'll have at least one long talk by the end so we'll find out. Nice upbeat song, appropriate for the midpoint.  
So it seems I've overlooked a plot hole: apparently in the canon story the storage room (which is where Shiki woke up) isn't unlocked before the first trial. It's not that importance though, just needed to change the dialogue up a bit. I've also tried using this new format where I sometimes just fast forward a bit and tell you where Shiki is and what time it is in order to not have to fill in the blank with inconsequential boring stuffs. Tell me how that worked out for you.  
Anyway here it is (if anyone's even waiting for this thing) after a whole week. Mostly it's back to slice-of-life stuffs for better or worse. Enjoy and leave feedback.

* * *

**Chapter 10**

**Gymnasium, Morning**

_Day six, the morning after our first execution, Monokuma called us to the gymnasium, no doubt to push the students further into despair…_

"Arms out! Up and down, up and down! One. Two. Three. Four. One! Two! Three! Four!"

_It seems I was horribly, horribly wrong…_

_Quiet. Not a word. I will have nothing to say about this. The absurdity of it all is killing my brain cells slowly. Whatever sentience I still possess will not be wasted on this._

Monokuma is, of course, standing on stage, doing jumping jacks. I think he's expecting us to do the same but no. _No! I'm only going so far for survival. That's the line right there. I will not do jumping jacks. I won't sink that low. Just, no. Ishimaru can jump until the planet explodes, I will have no part in this._

"I think he would like us to join the exercise." Fujisaki mumbles next to me.

"And I would like him to choke on his own piss and die. We would all like a lot of things it seems."

"I-I think it would be wise to humor him while we're his prisoners Nakahara-san…"

"And I think it would be wise if we would all hang ourselves before he comes up with his next great idea. I will not have any of this. There are certain lines a man will not cross."

To my surprise, Fujisaki giggles at what I said. I'm starting to doubt my sources now, is that really not a girl? I mean just listen to her voice… his voice.

Monokuma has apparently finished his abominable practice "Ahh man… it feels great to get a good workout! Being indoors all the time is bad for your body!"

"Perhaps we should be outdoor then." I reply with as much restraint as I can conjure.

"Don't fret about small stuffs. That's my motto."

"What do you want from us? Surely you did not call us here simply to exercise." Oogami is losing her patience.

"Simply… to exercise? Whaddya mean, 'simply'? You only mock your workout because you can't handle my workout!"

"Whatever, just answer the question…" Naegi cuts in "Did you really call us here just to do some exercise?"

"Goodness gracious no! I don't have that kind of time!" _I don't either Monokuma _"Ahem, I have an announcement! For every class trial you survive, a whole new world inside the academy will be made available to you! So with that, you're free to begin exploring. Enjoy the post-Trial world to your hearts' content!"

"You could not have told us that using the monitors around the academy?" I ask.

"Don't fret about small stuffs. That's my motto. Upupupu, I said it again. Maybe that makes it my catchphrase?" and he was gone.

"A new world?" Naegi asks.

"Perhaps a way out?" Asahina says without a trace of irony. _Optimism has its limit woman._

"The chances of that are low." Ludenberg comments.

"You can't say shit 'til you've actually looked." Oogami is clearly more hopeful…

"Evidently she can. She just did." I point out.

"Regardless, it seems we need to perform yet another search of the premises." Oogami says.

"All right, soldiers! Let's split up and move out!" Ishimaru shouts. _One of these days I'll rip his tongue out and burn the obnoxious little thing… _"Once we've completed our rounds, we'll rendezvous in the cafeteria for debriefing!"

* * *

The 'new world' Monokuma was talking about seems to be the next floor of the school. The shutter previously blocking our passage is now gone. _Let's chalk that up as one of the few good things that come out of yesterday's murder. _I head up stair and boot up my ElectroID to check out the map. Restrooms, two classrooms, a swimming pool with changing rooms and a library. The classrooms and restrooms I doubt could provide anything new, so I head to the nearby pool.

I hear Asahina as soon as I enter "There's a pool in the back. A pool! There's a pool. A pool, a pool!"

"Yes, there's a pool in the back." I reply "Thank you for pointing that out. I missed that fact the previous four times you said it."

"There's a bunch of exercise equipment in the changing rooms too! Sakura's going to go nuts when she sees this!" _Thank you for engraving in my brain the frightening image of Oogami going nuts._

Inside the room were Asahina, Fujisaki, Naegi, Ludenberg, Maizono and Kuwata. _I see the girl's taking yesterday's business seriously._

"If it means our quality of life keeps improving like this, I could deal with the occasional class trial. Ehehehe…" Ludenberg comments.

"Two students for one floor? I can live with that." I say.

"I'm sure you can live with a lot worse."

"First thing in the morning, the two creepy lovebirds exchange their daily dose of insanity." Kuwata frowns.

"First thing in the morning, the two murderous lovebirds fail to stay more than five meters away from each other."

"W-we're not actually…" Maizono quickly denies.

"Or should I say… the **three** love birds." Ludenberg gazes in Naegi's direction. _The plot thickens._

Asahina gasps, covering her mouth with both her hands. Fujisaki just blushes furiously, looking down. _Seriously ladies… I mean guys…_

"So what's the deal with the giant gatling gun in front of the dressing rooms?" I change the subject hastily.

"I assume it's to keep people in the right area." Ludenberg replies. _Because clearly only a gatling gun will do the job._

"That is correct." Monokuma pops out of nowhere. "Have to keep school's integrity y'know. You teenagers get the hot on for freaking everything. It's only a matter of time before a few of you go for straight up sex in one of our dressing rooms."_ I see my attempt to change the topic backfired horribly…_

"So it's alright for sex outside the dressing rooms?" I ask. _Classrooms are more romantic anyway…_

He shrugs in an exaggerated manner. "If you guys are that desperate I doubt even ten gatling guns will keep you in check." _Logic, ladies and gentlemen._

"So sex is forbidden in semi-private spaces, but is completely valid in public spaces?" Kuwata asks. _I swear he's actually considering it…_

"Of course."

"A-assuming you differentiate genders by people's ElectroID…" Fujisaki attempts to steer the conversation away from sex in public spaces "What if someone were to borrow another's ElectroID?"

"Crap! I didn't think of that. I'll make a new rule! You're forbidden from lending your ElectroID to anyone" _I quickly boot up my ElectroID to check. Yup, a new rule._

"You sure are putting a lot of effort into this." Ludenberg says. _What did the gatling gun give it away?_

"High-schoolers are basically walking libidos y'know? To keep you from making terrible mistakes, I've gotta crank the security up to eleven!"

"Then maybe you should be equally strict about the dormitory as well. There's no saying what could happen there. Say a male and female spending the night in the same room…"

"A male and female **did** spend the night in the same room Ludenberg." I point out. Kuwata and Maizono begin to fidget.

"Nah, knock yourselves out" Monokuma dismisses "I simply wish to maintain the sanctity of the school. I have no interest in what happens in the dorms! Take someone by force or get your kink on, I don't care!"

"Congratulation Kuwata, Maizono"

"W-what are you implying?"

"We would never…"

"**Anyway**, That's that. You guys can start your teenage romance **after** I'm out of sight. Geez. Catch ya later!" Monokuma disappears.

"Gaaah! Way to kill the mood…" Asahina complains "I'm gonna go for a swim to cheer myself up. Celes, Fujisaki, Maizono, any of you wanna join me?"

"I… dislike getting my face wet…" Ludenberg says. _Huh…_

"If Celes won't come, I guess I can't either." Maizono says "It's her turn today after all…" _Glad to see our little murderous idol taking her captivity seriously._

"I'm sorry… I'll have to pass…" Fujisaki rejects. _I have a few ideas why…_

"Why? Swimming is always the answer!" Asahina is baffled. _One of these days I'll have to ask her to swim us out of this place…_

"Right then, I'm out. See ya." I head out. _The library next then._

While the library is indeed filled with all kind of books, it is also quite dusty and dimly lit. Other than that things are mostly pretty standard. A monitor, a camera, tables and chairs. Something to take note of however, is a laptop in the corner. I very much doubt Monkuma would be careless enough to allow access to the internet or something but perhaps Fujisaki's abilities will exceed his expectation. _Certainly something to consider. _Inside the room are Kirigiri, Togami, Yamada and Fukawa, each doing their own thing.

"I'm flabbergasted!" Yamda screams suddenly "Look how many books there are! And yet, my own manga is nowhere to be found!"

"Maybe they don't keep bad porn around?" I suggest.

"S-surprisingly enough a few of those do find their way in here in here." Fukawa replies, avoiding eye contacts as always.

"Hmm. I guess your stuffs are just really shit porn then Yamada."

"Y-yeah… I bet he used twice as many tissues and lotion as he did papers and pens…"

"Heheh, nice!"

"Your ignorance is clear as day…" Yamada gets indignant "You don't understand my work at all…"

"I'd be ashamed of myself if I did."

"Hmph. I've grown quite accustomed to taunts. Don't fool yourself into thinking such attacks can deplete my HP…"

"Such attacks aren't meant to deplete HP anyway. They tend to lower stats and shits." …_What the hell did I just say?_

"Oooooh. What's this?" _Stop that Yamada you're scaring me_ "Master Nakahara. Are you, perchance, an avid gamer?"

"Um… I might be?" _That's the most honest answer I can conjure at this point. Blah blah amnesia blah blah._

"Hmm. I suppose I can find it in my heart to forgive your previous insults master Nakahara. We all get short-sighted sometimes. Please do fix it though. I'd hate to see a fellow compatriot be tainted by foolish misconceptions."

Fukawa gives me a pitiful look. _Don't group me with him woman._ Replying to him would be a mistake though so I hold my tongue.

Suddenly I feel someone tapping me on the shoulder. I turn around to find Kirigiri wordlessly holding an envelope out to me.

"What's this?"

"An envelope." Kirigiri replies. _Who are you, Yasuhiro Taeko?_

"You've read it?"

"Yes."

The thing looks pretty dusty, like the rest of the library. _Unexpected, considering the elitist attitude Hope's Peak seems to take_. I open the letter and read aloud the content.

"Notice from the Hope's peak Academy Administrative Office

For many years, Hope's Peak Academy has dedicated itself to the cultivation of world-class talent. The academy – operating under special government sanction – has a long-standing tradition of producing the highest quality graduates in all fields, many of whom are still flourishing in society.

Nevertheless, it has come to pass that this glorious work must, for the time being, be placed on hold. We bitterly regret having to make this decision, but the grave problem which has arisen has our hands tied. However, this does not spell the end for Hope's Peak Academy. We fully intend to reinstate operations as soon as the aforementioned problem has been remedied.

In conclusion, we would like to offer our sincerest thanks to everyone who has provided their support and assistance over the years. And, in addendum, we would like to make it known that we are waiting to receive approval from the relevant branches of the government before formally ceasing operations here at Hope's Peak Academy."

"What do you think it means Nakahara?" Kirigiri asks as soon as I finish.

"A hundred and seventy words of self-congratulatory and sugar-coating bollocks."

"An accurate assessment, if not a very helpful one." Togami says.

"My assessment was as helpful as the letter itself."

"We did learn quite a few things from it." Kirigiri argues. "We know Hope's Peak is closed at the moment and we know there has been a certain 'grave problem'."

"That might explain why we're the only one here at the school." Naegi suggests. Apparently he got in at some point and heard me reading the whole letter out loud.

"Does it?" I question. "There is no date on the letter and no way to prove its validity. Also, if an event such as this has arisen, why have we not heard of it?"

"We're talking about someone who can take over the entire Hope's Peak Academy..." Togami says "Create countless lethal remote controlled teddy bears. Put up multiple seemingly indestructible Iron Plates. Install dozens of high-quality cameras. And kidnapped sixteen students without the police ever catching wind of it.

"I refuse to believe such thing would escape my attention. On top of that, I simply will not buy the fact that the letter is here due to Monokuma's carelessness. This, even if it is genuine, is likely here to mislead us."

"Or to give us clue." Kirigiri suggests. "He seems like the type who would do that."

"I suppose he does. Let's keep both possibilities in mind." I hand the envelope to Kirigiri. "Keep it. Perhaps one day you'll figure it out." She takes the envelope silently, nodding. "I don't suppose that laptop in the corner will be of any use?"

"It's broken."

"Too much to hope for. Guess I'll see you guys in the cafeteria then."

* * *

**Cafeteria, Morning**

"Good work, soldiers!" _quit your fantasy Ishimaru_ "Does anyone have anything to report?" The others report the obvious. A pool, a library and no exit. "Despair not my friends, for I have made a groundbreaking discovery. We now have access to the large bath here in the dormitory! Furthermore, there's now a wealth of food, clothing and supplies in the previously empty storeroom! Why, it's an exercise in excess!"_ That's a blessing._

"Try not to forget that leaving your room at night is forbidden…" Ludenberg says without a trace of irony.

"And what about the important part: a way out?" Oowada asks.

"I-I… regret to inform…" Ishimaru mutters. _Figures…_

"This ain't the time to be squealin' about new places to jerk around in. We're trapped in here goddamnit! You're supposed to be lookin' for a way out!"

"Now, now, trying to find fault in everything we do isn't going to accomplish anything." Celes says. "Adaptability. It's all about being able to adapt. So let's enjoy being locked up together."

"While I'm not exactly content about being locked up…" I say "If it's inevitable, let's at least enjoy it no? Whining and screaming isn't going to burst us out of here any quicker." _That, and only someone with two extra balls instead of a brain would discuss any promising lead in the bloody cafeteria._

"Well, for the time being…" Ishimaru continues with significantly less enthusiasm "continue your recon, and if you find anything, you can make a report then…"

_And so the meeting ends. The fact that we now have significantly more varied food, clothing and supplies seem to get the students even more depressed. Lord knows how they cope with the outside world if they react to these little luxuries the same way they react to a global pandemic. And I thought pessimism was my thing…_

* * *

**Storage Room, Noon**

Me, Maizono, Ludenberg and Kuwata are now in the storage room, checking out the stuffs Ishimaru mentioned. There are, indeed, food, clothing and various other supplies. Not much that would help with our escape but there are things here that I would like. I pick up a butterfly knife and quietly slip it into my pocket. The sense of security it gives is truly disturbing. _Makes me wonder what kind of work I was in before all this_. _I know I have Enoshima's kickass army knife back in my room but it would be unwise to just carry that thing around. This though, this is useful for self-defense. Lord knows I need an extra edge in that department._ I also put on a pair of gloves I find in a box somewhere because hell why not.

"Why would ya ever want that?" Kuwata peeks over my shoulder and ask.

"Better to have and not need than to need and not have friend."

"It also hides fingerprints." Ludenberg comments "Very useful if you were to… say… murder someone, yes?"

"Yes, very."

Kuwata frowns. "Ya know it's fucked that ya both think along that same line."

"It's why we're friends~" I say, flashing an intentionally gross smile. Ludenberg just giggles. "So nothing helpful here after all?"

"Nah. Nothing that would help with our escape."

"Thought so. Still, we can't say our lives here didn't improve today. A library, numerous trivial luxurious stuffs and a swimming pool if you somehow want that."

"I'd like a music room though." Maizono says, clapping her hand in that traditional girlish way "Oh oh and a stage with all sort of equipments. Ahhh~ that would be lovely."

"Hell yeah it would!" Kuwata loudly agrees "Fuck the library and the swimming pool I want a stage to scream on!"

"Oh are you into that sort of things? I prefer pop myself but that's probably because it's the only thing I'm good at. You'll have to show me what punk rock is like sometimes Kuwata-san."

"Ha! Then it's decided…"

"I could incite a murder or two and see what we'll get next. Would you two like that?" Ludenberg cuts in before someone starts making smutty fanfictions about these two. _Let's not get there yet, at least not while Yamada's around._

"Ugh, don't even joke about that." Kuwata groans.

"Still…" I think aloud "Perhaps another floor would indeed be beneficial to our escape. It's not like we came away this morning entirely without any potential leads."

"B-but someone will have to die…" Maizono says.

"Two people will have to die at least. But if I recall correctly someone here was willing to kill off fifteen students for that." _To be fair Maizono didn't know about the trial back then but hey, someone has to take the short end of the stick. How the hell am I going to get through all this without tormenting anyone?_

Kuwata is getting crossed again "Will ya fucking drop that shit already?"

"Okay okay. Calm your tits Kuwata. Just teasing"

"Your teasing is going to get your throat slit one of these days." Ludenberg smiles "And hopefully instead of having roughly a dozen other corpses on our hand as the result, we'll have another floor filled with luxuries and glamour."

"I'm sure hell is also filled with luxuries and glamour so feel free to join me at some point if my throat does get slit."

Kuwata frowns. "I know I sound like a broken record at this point but you're both fucked in the head…"

"It's preferable to being fucked elsewhere."

Maizono's face goes bright red. _What's up with you ladies…_

"How crude. And here I was thinking you were all sophistication and cynicism Nakahara." Ludenberg giggles.

"Variety is the spice of life m'lady. I have space in my black little heart for just about anything. Whether it be blackmail, propaganda, betrayal, or just good old murder."

"I prefer poisoning and manipulation myself. I'd like a certain amount of… class in my dealings you see."

"I have a soft spot for those meself. Efficiency takes top priority but one must never neglect the importance of elegance."

Our high-class talk seems to be hurting Kuwata's puny brain. "I swear you two are just fucking made for each other…"

* * *

**Cafeteria, Evening**

Me, Maizono, Kirigiri, Ludenberg, Oowada, Naegi and Kuwata are in the cafeteria having dinner. The others have either already eaten or have chosen to eat in their own room now that there are snacks available. It seems that despite the absurdity we find ourselves in, daily mundane activities do find their ways into our life. Dinner, then, is a fairly standard affair. We eat and occasionally we talk. It's almost as if we didn't suddenly get kidnapped and forced to kill each other by a talking teddy bear with bad taste.

"Heh. Today's meal is actually pretty good." Oowada comments. "Who made it this time?"

"I would also like to know." Ludenberg says "I may have needs for a cook of this caliber in the future."

"Pfft. A meal like this could only have been made by Maizono." Kuwata states what he believes is the obvious. "I mean this is the best I've had in weeks, who else could have made this?"

"Um… Kuwata-san…" Maizono cuts in before he could embarrass himself further "since it would have been inconvenient for Kirigiri to have to stand in the kitchen with me while I cook, someone else took over today."

"What… who?"

"Nakahara-san actually. He volunteers before Asahina could… repeat the incident from the other day…"

"Thank you for your kind compliments Kuwata." I say at last "Good to know that while my snarky wisdom goes over your head, my cooking fits your belly nicely."

"Oh tell me you're not freaking serious…" Kuwata shouts. Our silence seems to suggest we're indeed, 'freaking serious'. "Ugh now I have the image of Nakahara wearing an apron stuck in my head."

"Heheh" Ludenberg apparently finds that highly amusing. "I for one would love to see that image myself. The snarky and devious Nakahara Shiki being the ideal househusband. Oh the delicious scandal of it all."

"You're welcome to bring a camera next time." I reply bluntly "I'll take pride in whatever little talent I have."

"R-really though. This is a really good meal. You should do this more often." Naegi suggests, probably to steers the conversation elsewhere.

"If I really must. Really though it wastes time I can spend on more productive things and I'd avoid it if I can."

"Haha… it's a wonder you're so good at it with that attitude."

"All you need is standard really."

"I have quite a lot of that." Ludenberg says. "Would I pass for a great cook then?"

_Taeko might._ "You also need the ability to get off your high horse."

"Ah, that's a shame then. I do love my high horse."

"I love mine too" I say, smugly sipping my drink. The others are mostly used to that at this point but they still give us annoyed looks. _Honesty is a lost virtue these days…_

"W-we do need to do something about this though." Maizono attempts to change the subject. "Now that I'm going to be guarded for most of the day, someone will have to take over the cooking. Nakahara doesn't seem like he want to do it often and Fujisaki says she might be very busy from today onward for some reason."

"That won't do." Ludenberg says "The other girls' cooking is severely below my standard, unless Kirigiri actually turns out to be a fine cook." _Kirigiri shakes her head_. "There you go."

"I can't be arsed to do this again tomorrow." I say "Any other guy willing to give it a shot? Just know that Ludenberg has high standards and a strong love for poison."

That seems to quickly scare Naegi and Kuwata off. _Guess I'll have to settle for…_

"I'll do it." Oowada volunteers.

"A shocking turn of events." Ludenberg says.

"Oowada-san, that's an amazing quirk!" Maizono says.

"Seriously dude?" Kuwata says.

This seems to annoy him. "What's so god damn surprising about that?"

"Maybe it's because you have the sensitivity of a jackhammer and the brain of a cow." I suggest.

"That mouth of yours is going to get you…"

"You have to admit…" Maizono cuts in "Oowada does look like the kind of hooligan who ends up being a big softy inside~"

"He sort of does now that I think about it." Naegi agrees.

"A fair assessment." Ludenberg says.

"You guys…" Oowada is losing it.

"Oh be quiet you oaf." I say "Just cook tomorrow and be done with it. We promise to keep it a secret that the Super High-School Level Gang Leader actually has a soft spot for cooking and candies and rainbows and puppies and lord knows what else. Your reputation will stay spotless. Well, as spotless as a gang leader's reputation can be anyway."

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH PUPPIES?"

"…I think that said it all really…"

* * *

**Shiki's Room, Night**

I lock the door behind me and feel safer once more. _Truly, our captivity is only as bad as we make it. It's a prison, if we want out. It's a fortress, if we want in. No sense making it worse than it already is. Escaping will be a quiet process and will not be discussed in front of the others. Speaking of escape, I should really continue to work on that one._ I approach my table and open the drawers. Yasuhiro's book, Enoshima's knife, my toolbox, my DVD and my notebook. _Why did I not expect this?_ I check to make sure my door was locked, take a deep breath, and let out a roar.

"**MONOKUMA!**"

"Yes Nakahara-kun?" Monkuma asks innocently behind me.

"You have something of mine." He tilts his head, looking confused "the DVD" he points at my drawer "Enoshima's DVD"

"You funny man Nakahara-kun. How can it be Enoshima's and yours at the same time?"

"Finders keepers"

He holds the DVD up for me to see "Finders keepers~". _One of these days I'll rip out your eyeballs and shove them up your nose holes Monokuma…_

"I'm alive, Enoshima Junko isn't."

He finds that very very amusing for some reason. "Upupupupupu. Is. That. So?"

"It doesn't matter. This is not part of the rules. You can't do this."

"But I did."

_Deep breathe. Violence isn't always the solution Shiki, just most of the time. Let's try another approach. _"If the other students find out you're breaking your own rules they'll stop playing the little carefully constructed game you've got going here. Would you like that?"

"Upupu. I'm just messing around with ya Nakahara-kun." I hold out my hand. "BUT, you did steal from a recently killed friend, and as your principle I simply cannot let that slide."

"How do you steal from dead people?"

"Don't fret about small stuffs. That's my motto. Upupu, I said it a third time."

"Oh be quiet. Just give it back already."

"NO!" He raises both his hands in some incredibly sad gesture of intimidation "You stole three things from Enoshima: a key, a knife and a DVD. You must pay. Yes, with three answers."

"What?"

"You stole three things from…"

"I KNOW WHAT YOU SAID! What do you mean three answers?"

"Three is the number you get when you add two to one. Answer is a thing said, written…"

"YES! YES I KNOW WHAT THREE AND ANSWER IS!" _deep breathe deep breathe_._ You're better than this Shiki. Just play along_ "What if I get the answers wrong?"

"Then I'll feed this thing to next door's goat or something."

_Well no punishment on my part so hell why not._ "Ask."

"Hmm… let's see… tell me about your sister."

_What sister? _"Which one?" _What the heck? Why the hell did I say that?_

"Upupupu."

"Hold on how am I supposed to tell you about my sister in the first place? What with my amnesia and everything."

"It doesn't matter, that was the right response." _He's testing my memories._

"Right, onto the second question then."

"Upupupu. You feel for my clever trap! That wasn't a question, that was a command. An answer is a response to a question, therefore that wasn't an answer!"

"Aww fuck off!"

"Upupupupu. Now, the first question. What was your… older sister like?"

"I said I don't know. Amnesia and shits."

"Ugh. Okay, lemme rephrase that. Tell me anything that comes to mind about your older sister."

"That's not a question."

"Aww sucks. You're learning Nakahara-kun, that's good. Your principle is proud. Can you tell me everything you know about your older sister?"

"Yes. Yes I can. Next question."

"WHAT!?"

"Yes I can tell you everything I know about my older sister. Next question."

"But you didn't…"

"I answered your question little man. Next question."

"There's a special floor in hell for young men who nitpick their elders I'll have you know…" I shrug "Ugh, fine. What were you parents like?"

"What parents?"

"Upupupu. I got what I want." _What?_

"Whatever, last question, quick."

"Ugggh. I can't think of one right now."

"Good, just give me the DVD then."

"I think not Nakahara-kun. Three things, three answers, fair game. I'll come back when I figure out the last one. I'm out now, adios Nakahara. It has been highly amusing talking to ya." Needless to say, he's no longer there.

That meeting was a lot more useful than one may think. I lost Enoshima's DVD, but I also learnt quite a few things. For one, Monokuma had no issue with me peeking at Maizono's motive, but he was more reluctant with Enoshima's. Sure he made excuses but I don't buy any of it. This at least proves that I'm on the right track for going for Enoshima's DVD. Question is, does he intend to give it back once I've played his little game? And even if he does, would he give me the original one, unaltered? I was right in thinking Enoshima was more important than we may initially believe. We'll have to work on that.

And he was testing my memories. It seems while I remember nothing specific, I do instinctively remember things from my past. I know I have multiple sisters for one and remember nothing of my parents. Was I an orphan, or was that knowledge important enough for Monokuma to focus on erasing more thoroughly? I might have gotten more than he did out of this whole meeting after all. A blessing in every calamity…

And a calamity in every blessing.

With such cheerful thought in my head, I grab Yasuhiro's book from the other day and start reading until sleep takes me.

* * *

Nakahara Shiki's (?) Notes – Day 6 Report:  
Survivors: 14  
Facts:  
. We now have access to the next floor in the academy, which includes a swimming pool (with two changing rooms and exercise equipment), a library (with a laptop, an old letter to Hope's Peak and a locked room) and two restrooms and classrooms.  
. The large bath in the Dorm is now unlocked.  
. The previously useless Storage Room is now filled with clothing, food and supplies.

Notes:  
. While I remember nothing explicit of my past, it seems instinctive memories do find their way into my head.  
. Some memories were wiped more thoroughly than others.  
. Monokuma said he would give me back Enoshima's DVD if I answer three of his (seemingly) pointless questions, I answered two. He'll come back when he thinks of a third.  
. The letter in the library seems to imply Hope's Peak is temporarily closed, something which is apparently unknown to all of us up to this point. If this is true it may explain why we're the only one here.  
. I'm extremely skeptical of this however, it seems strange that not only we're the only one who did not know about this. That and it is highly unlikely that such thing can happen without my knowledge. And that's not even going into how such letter may not even be genuine in the first place.

* * *

Surprisingly enough this is actually the longest chapter yet. Weird, considering not much actually happened.  
No idea how long the next chapter will take but I'm having school holidays so maybe it won't be a whole week this time.  
Please leave reviews to tell me what you think.


	14. Chapter 11

Jin-Rimu: Woo! A review! For a while I thought this chapter would get no review again. I do get incredibly paranoid when that happens (and maybe it's justified, who knows). Really glad you enjoyed it. I'm motivated to write more now :).  
AnimesWorld: Woo! More than one review for a chapter again! ...Anyway... I do know who Otonashi Ryouko is but not in great details. My friend read the light novel and said it's not completed yet (I assume he means in English) so my knowledge of her came purely out of the wiki page (and let's not get into further details for those who haven't read Dangan Ronpa/Zero). I will say that I currently see no way she can fit into my story but that may change. I can definitely see Mukuro as either Shiki's ex or sister yes (and that's neither confirming nor denying your theory). I imagine Shiki to be the type who's more suited to delicate tasks or something involving mental aptitude so hell why not cooking?. Shiki being the pragmatist that he is would probably start in the bedroom (but let's not get ahead of myself, I'm definitely not equipped to write those yet). If I remember correctly Mukuro's ElectroID was forged so there isn't one for her but I might be wrong. Shiki's heart, like all things involving him, would be a jumble of black and white mixed together, so gray is the closest color ;). Very nice song, it reminds me a lot of Steins;Gate, which cannot be a bad thing :).  
Guest: I don't know why but when you said that I imagined Celes doing the cuddling instead of Shiki XD. I kinda like the idea. I'll see what I can do :).  
So here's Chapter 11. Enjoy. A bit more happened here than in the last one so there's that at least.  
Edit: Guest: Thanks for pointing that out. I lost count how many times I got those two names mixed up XD. Should be fixed now.

* * *

**Chapter 11**

"Good morning you guys! It is now 7:00 AM! Rise and shiiiine! Let's make today into the best day it can be!"

Excruciatingly. Loud. Twat.

Well bugger all else to do. The cafeteria it is then. Not before a quick trip to the Monomono machine though.

"Nakahara-san." Maizono greets as I leave my room.

"Maizono."

Now, to the Monomono machine… hold on a second…

"Why are you following me Maizono?"

"Y-You're supposed to be with me today… at least until lunch."

"Oh… right… that." _Ugh, this may be more tiring than I initially thought… why didn't they go for my flawless kneecaps solution? Would have saved us all a lot of trouble…_

"T-the cafeteria is that way Nakahara-san."

"Thank you for pointing that out."

"…where are we going?"

"The Monomono Machine. I'm not getting through the day without my morning coffee."

Maizono raises no objection so the rest of the walk was silent for the most part. We eventually arrived at the School Shop and I start inserting coins until I get some coffee, discarding pretty much everything else. Yes I have that many coins to spare. Suddenly I hear Maizono gasps.

"What?"

"N-Nothing" She stammers.

I quickly search for what she was looking at. "The hairpin?" her silence confirms it. I toss the thing her way and she barely catches it.

"T-Thanks..."

"Feel free to take anything that isn't coffee." She didn't. Eventually I got what I needed. We both head to the cafeteria in silent. _Does she feel that guilty about the whole thing? Don't see the point myself, what's done is done._

"Morning Nakahara, Maizono." Naegi greets as we walk into the cafeteria. _I think the cup of coffee I'm carrying communicates that I'm safe to talk to or something._

"Morning. Who's missing this time?"

"Togami's late again and Ishimaru's trying to fix that." _Chances are he's just not going to bother coming._

"Waiting doesn't bother me." Ludenberg says "but there is another issue: I'm thirsty."

"How the hell's that our problem?" Oowada asks bluntly.

"That's certainly an issue." I say, absentmindedly sipping my coffee.

"Yamada, would you kindly make me a cup of tea?" Ludenberg asks. "Make that milk tea, if you would be so kind."

"Wh-Why me?" Yamada asks.

"You bear the same plump form as the master of the café I used to frequent. Do be quick about it please, I'm parched."

"A-all right."

"I can only imagine the number of ways this can go wrong…" I think aloud.

A few minutes later, Yamada comes back, carrying a tray in one hand. _Oh dear…_

"Be right back" I say, heading to the kitchen, leaving the students with mildly confused look.

_Now, considering Ludenberg's persona… it would be that type of tea no? Right, time to work._

**Craaaaaaash!**

_Yup, it's happening._

"Whaaat?" I hear Yamada screams. _That's enough to guess where the conversation will go from there. Judging by her 'high-class tastes' and her insistence on things going exactly the way she wants them to thus far, that incident back there was not entirely unexpected. Perhaps if she had asked someone with extremely high standard like Togami, not that he would even acknowledge that request the cunt, it might have went alright. Ah well, I'm here and bugger all else to do... That should do it. Let's hope I'm in time to prevent Ludenberg from making the others piss themselves…_

"Shut yer fuckin' trap and go make me my goddamn tea, Porky!"

_…that idea went out the window real quick…_

"Eeeeeeep. Y-yes! Porky at your service! Bringing your tea riiight awaaay!" Yamada screams, sprinting pass me, completely oblivious to the fact that I'm carrying what she wants.

"Ehehe. It's amazing how a little intimidation can go." Ludenberg says, leaving the others speechless.

"You know you could have just asked someone more qualified." I say, handing her what she wants. "You don't ask fat otaku who sweatily masturbate to ten years old magical girls to make royal tea."

"Oh?" she looks mildly surprise "Why, aren't you the perfect househusband Nakahara."

"Don't call me that."

"Then how about a… butler?"

"That has a much nicer ring to it yes. Although I get the feeling you're gauging my precise use in that department right now."

"That's because I am." She smiles.

_Is that so? _"How much does it pay?"

Before she could answer, Ishimaru comes bursting through the door.

"Attention, soldiers! We have an unusual situation on our hands! Togami's not coming out of his room. I rang the bell a number of times, he just wouldn't come out. What if… something happened to him?"

"That would be a blessing" I say. "But being a cunt makes you immune to death 90% of the time so I wouldn't hold my breath."

"M-maybe we should split up and go look for him?" Naegi suggests. Most of the students soon do so.

"Are you two not going to look for Togami?" Naegi asks with Maizono next to him. _Oh, right…_

"Why would I? I haven't finished my tea yet." Ludenberg says it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"If he's alive he's just fucking with us." I say "and if he's dead… well… there's not much we can do about it is there? Might well enjoy ourselves a bit longer before another corpse turns up. I can't be arsed to stand up again now. Naegi, you want to take over for me? Our little idol needs someone to make sure she doesn't go on a murder spree. I'll owe you a secret or two."

"I can do that…" Naegi says, although I don't think he plans on ever making use of that debt. They quickly leave to search for the rich twat. _Honestly, why doesn't anyone see things my way? I made sense right?_

"I must say Nakahara-kun, you do make good tea."

_Kun huh?_ "Just making sure, I'm talking to Yasuhiro now right?"

"Yes." _Her half-opened eyelids should have pretty much confirmed that._

"Huh. You switched back as soon as the others are out of sight, one wonders why you ever tried so hard with that fantasy persona of yours."

"Taeko is a b…"

"Yes! Yes, I know how you feel about yourself. Christ…"

"Then you shouldn't really have to wonder."

"Apologies for being thick."

"Your stupidity allows you to talk to Yasuhiro, Nakahara-kun." She takes a sip of her tea. "I must say I prefer milk myself."

"Milk?"

"Yes, milk. A white liquid that…"

"Yes Yasuhiro! I know what milk is!"

"Then stop asking stupid questions." She says in the same tone, face deadpan. _I swear anyone who can hold a proper conversation with this girl for more than five minutes deserve a dozen medals._

I let out a sigh "Let's try that again. Why do you ask for royal milk tea when you prefer just milk?"

"I didn't ask for tea."

"Yes you did."

"No I didn't."

I take a deep breath and attempt to deduce exactly what this girl is trying to communicate… "Why did Ludenberg ask for tea then?"

"Because she likes tea."

"But you said you like milk."

"That's because I do."

_Calm yourself Shiki. No violence is needed. One step at a time._ "So, you and Ludenberg like different things?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"I tell myself I like tea better when I'm Ludenberg."

"And that works?"

"Evidently" She takes another sip. "I tell myself a lot of things Nakahara-kun. We all do. You of all people should know."

"I suppose that's true."

"Yes." Yasuhiro finishes her tea and stands up. _Ludenberg would have taken her sweet time with that thing..._

"Where are you going?"

"The library."

"To look for Togami?"

"Might well."

"Fair enough." I finish my coffee and get up. "What about Yamada? He's still in the kitchen you know."

She just shrugs and walks out without another word. Guess he'll just have to keep making tea until the end of time. Maybe he'll get halfway decent then.

The walk was mostly silent. Yasuhiro isn't one for small talk after all. Ah well, this provides me a good opportunity to simply observe how she 'works'. Yasuhiro's posture is completely different from Ludenberg's. She walks at a fairly slow pace, her hands hanging limply at her sides and had she been wearing something with pockets I suspect both her hands will be permanently buried in there. Her posture seems almost sleepy, as if she just got out of bed, uncaring and indifferent to the rest of the world. Her face is as deadpan as faces get, eyelids permanently half-closed, half opened. Once we reach the second floor though, there were voices and Yasuhiro was gone completely. Ludenberg's footsteps seem to have more purpose and her hands are crossed, occasionally twirling one of her twin tails. Her movements are more deliberate, elegant and careful. Yasuhiro isn't simply the Queen of Liars. She's an illusionist, an artist, a story teller. She turns herself, those around her and the world itself into an audience, a set of characters, a canvas, simultaneously. Watching it all play out… it's marvelous. This facade is an art in and of itself, and there's a sort of beauty in it.

"Is something the matter Nakahara-san? Surely you don't think something serious happened?" _Her mannerism flipped 180 degree too..__._

"Nothing important." I say as I walk pass her toward the library. _There will be time for this later._

I enter the library to find Togami standing in front of a table carrying a book, surrounded by the other students. _Judging by the lamp, he was probably just sitting here reading. Mystery solved, if it was ever a mystery in the first place…_

"D-do you intend to make use of its tricks?" Maizono asks. I guess she's talking about his novel?

"Don't be stupid." He answers nonchalantly. "I'll just use them as inspiration. When it's my turn to play the game, I'll use a trick of my own making. It wouldn't be nearly as fun if I didn't. It's not every day you get the chance to participate in such a palpably tense game you know. So there's no point in not enjoying yourself. Haha…"

"G-Game?" Kuwata says "The hell're you on about?! Enough crazy talk!"

"A game is a game, and this is a game of life and death, where there can only be one victor. That's all there is to it."

"A zero-sum game." Ludenberg says "A situation like this is referred to as a zero-sum game. When resources are finite, one person's gain results in equal degree of loss among the other players. That is the situation we're in now, only in this case, the resource we're competing for… is the singular title of 'successful villain'."

"In other word, this was always meant to be a game of King of the Castle."

"Only…" I speak up "No matter who goes free, the mastermind wins."

"That's why I said we need to adapt." Ludenberg says "If everybody stops wanting to get out, then there's no need to worry about getting caught up in the game."

"Yes. The only way to win, is not to play."

"Why wouldn't you want to participate in such a thrilling game?" Togami asks.

"The possibility of you losing hasn't even so much as crossed your mind, has it?" Ludenberg asks.

"Of course not." He answers bluntly.

"And what happens if you die?" Asahina asks.

"I won't die. Not a chance."

"The hell's your problem?" Oowada says.

"Immortality it seems." I chuckle. "A hellish existence if you ask me."

"You know I'm surprised." Togami ignores me "That the archaic breed of misfits you were plucked from hasn't gone extinct yet."

"I'll fuckin' kill you!" Oowada roars.

"I told you once, and I'll tell you again. I won't be killed."

"Say as much as you want, it's no use." Ludenberg says "The concept of 'losing' doesn't exist for him. He's Togami Byakuya, one of the elite, groomed to inherit the Togami Group. From birth, he has had it drilled into his head that he's destined to succeed, and he's accomplished that. Isn't that right?"

"I'm impressed."

"You and I are the same. I, too, believe that games exist to be won."

"Except…" I say "only one of you knows how to play this game."

This seems to irritate Togami greatly. "Explain yourself."

"Heh. This isn't a game of defeating your enemies little man. This is a game about betraying your allies. Ask yourself, why are those here all teenagers, coming to the same class, living in the same dorm? For one purpose, so that all the participants of the game are all simultaneously allies and enemies. By seeing those around you only as enemies, you have disregarded the very essence of the game: betrayal, deception, manipulation. Someone like you, someone groomed to believe that everyone who isn't an asset is an opponent, will never understand this concept. You are a proud lion, marching head first onto the stage blatantly announcing your immortality. But this isn't that kind of game. This is a game for hyenas, for crows, for vultures, a game for scoundrels, for backstabbers, for liars. You're none of those. You're a glorified, well-dressed sociopath with the subtlety of a cow. And that, little man, is why you will not win. I'd tell you to go home and leave the game to us adults, but unfortunately you have to win to do that."

While that might not have been the wisest move, it felt pretty damn good. Ludenberg chuckles, her face as unreadable as ever. Maizono, the murderous little idol, bites one of her finger and actually considers what I said in great detail. Kirigiri shows no distinct emotions, but I get the feeling she thinks me more dangerous than ever. The others have nothing to say. They must be having a hard time picking poisons.

Togami glares at me as if he can burn a hole through my face. "Lying? Backstabbing? Such underhand methods are beneath someone of my status. I will defeat you all using my own ability, as I always have. I am Togami Byakuya and on this I swear. Remember this when you lay dead in here, never seeing the outside world again."

"Heheheheheh. Of course you will your grace. When you lay limply in one of Monokuma's execution chamber, send the devil my regard."

"Tch. I have nothing more to say to you, imbecile. The rest of you, I hope you all bring a considerate amount of ambition. The game just won't be as fun otherwise."

"N-no…" Fujisaki mumbles, tears in his eyes "You- You can't… This… This isn't a game… Our lives… are at stake here… We're all friends… We can't kill each other… That's just not right!"

"But we did." I chuckle.

"Friends? When did that happen?" Togami asks. "We're not friends. No, it's the exact opposite. We're opponents, all vying for the spot on top of the hill." _It seems what I said fell on deaf ears. I suppose that's a good thing really. Never interrupt a cunt when he's marching off a cliff._

"B-but… still.." Fujisaki mumbles.

"But? Who said you could use that word? A plebeian like you need only agree with me."_ Oh my this is gold…_

"I-I'm… sorry…"

"The hell man?!" Oowada shouts "You get some sick pleasure outta bullying people weaker than you?! You make me sick!"

"To be fair he can't exactly bully people stronger than him." I point out.

"SHUT THE HELL UP!"

I give in and put my hands up. _I should really learn to keep my mouth shut sometimes._

"And the buddy-buddy act has started again." Togami says "How long are you going to keep this up?

"Fuck you!"

"Really? It seems you're only capable of spewing simple-minded, meaningless drivel."

"That's it! You're dead!"

"In any event…" Togami turns his back on us "I have no desire to waste my time on something as meaningless as cooperating with my opponents in a game of King of the Castle. You're on your own from here. Count me out."

Togami walks out on us. No one attempted to stop him. I'm sure a few of us are fantasizing about pulling out his teeth one at a time.

"Insufferable fool…" I mutter.

"B-But maybe he's right…" Fukawa says "It's not like anyone here… is going to be any worse off… without me. In fact… you want me gone, don't you?! I-I disgust you!"

"No!" Naegi denies "Nobody thinks that…"

"Y-You just think you don't think it, that's all! But in reality, you all think I'm vile! You want to get rid of me… don't you? All of you… are thinking exactly the same thing!" Fukawa storms out of the room.

"Wait, hold on! Fukawa!"

"Let her be." Ludenberg suggests "No one can stop her when she's like that."

"She's a lost cause anyway." I say.

The others raise no objection.

"I-I guess we won't be having any morning assembly today…" Ishimaru says. "T-Then you all should return to your room a-and get some rest."

After Ishimaru's incredibly reassuring command, the students scatter away from the library. _That could have gone better.._. I turn to head out before noticing something. _Something's missing. Something's definitely missing. Shelves, books, the envelope, tables, chairs… THE LAPTOP! Where's the laptop? Where the fuck is the laptop!? _I quickly leave the library and rush to the dorm. _Beside Monokuma, and I doubt it was him, there could only be one person… There he is._

I put my foot inside Fujisaki's room before he could close his door.

"Hello Fujisaki. Good to see you. Would you mind me coming in?"

"Um…"

"Thank you." I barge into his room before he could say anything else.

"W-What do you need Nakahara-san?" Fujisaki asks, visibly frightened.

_Okay. Okay. Think this through Shiki. Surveillance Camera. I obviously should have planned this better. It's alright, improvise._ "Fujisaki Chihiro, I… feel… I have something important to tell you…" I grab his shoulders and roughly pin him to the wall, out of sight of the camera. _Fuck this is embarrassing._

"Eeek. Nakahara-san… but… if you… but I'm… actually…" Fujisaki mumbles incoherently as my face closes in. _Quiet, I don't like this anymore than you do man._

"Shut up Fujisaki." I whisper as soon as my face's close enough. "Did you take it?"

"W-What?"

"Did you take the laptop from the library? Answer quietly. The camera."

He seems to realize what I'm talking about. "Um… Y-You… should come with me…"

I let go, leaving Fujisaki still a bit dazed. _This would have been a lot easier if you weren't a cross-dresser Fujisaki._ He opens the door and I follow him outside. Kirigiri sees us and gives me a questioning look but otherwise said nothing. Eventually we arrive at the bath house. I follow him in after checking no one was following us.

"It's in here…" Fujisaki says, taking out a laptop from one of the lockers.

"…I see. Why is it here?"

"I t-took it from the library."

"Uh-huh. The camera?"

"I-I don't think he saw me take it. I-I mean…" _fucking hell…_

"Well? Why is it in this room then?"

"B-because there's no camera in this room." _Now that he mentioned it…_

"And why is there no camera here?"

"I-I don't know but isn't that a good thing?"

"Is it? Do you think Monokuma doesn't know this is the only room without a camera? Do you think he would not hide some sort of listening device somewhere in here? Do you think he doesn't know there's a laptop missing in the library? Do you think maybe this is a trap? Do you think maybe he's trying to mislead us, providing the perfect opportunity like this? Eh?"

"I-I…"

"SPEAK UP FUJISAKI!"

"I'm sorry! I-I thought it would be worth the risk… I didn't think…" _The butterfly knife in my pocket is becoming very tempting…_

"You. Didn't. **Think**! Do you know what an opportunity this is? We could have made it look like we were passing up this opportunity but worked on it while someone else's keeping him occupied or something. Do you understand how much more likely it would be for us to succeed then? Now he knows the laptop is missing and he knows where to look. Any progress we make now puts us at risk, if it doesn't mislead us. That was the **one** advantage we could have had over him and because you brought the laptop here we're under his mercy once more!"

Fujisaki just looks down on the floor in shame with tears in somewhere in his eyes, as if he has just done something bad and I'm the teacher lecturing him on it. _Well to be fair he did something bad and I am lecturing him on it._

"Bloody hell… so how far did you get?"

"I-I'm sorry?"

"I assumed you took the laptop here to fix it right? How much progress did you make?"

"O-Oh, it's already fixed… I got it working yesterday. I'm working on hacking the school's system a-and creating an AI in case I get m-murdered anytime soon."

"Huh. Impressive."

"N-Not really…" he denies, getting a bit red.

"That's not very convincing coming from the Super High-School Level Programmer. This is a long shot but no connection to the net right?" Fujisaki shakes his head, still looking down "Figures. No one else knows about this?" He shakes his head again "Normally I would advise you to keep it that way in case Monokuma's mole, if there's one, finds out about it. Since Monokuma probably knows where it is though… You know what, do keep it hidden from most of the others, they may get ideas about what to do with it."

"Like what?"

"What do you mean?"

"Yamada has been going for almost a week without porn so he may get… ideas. Kuwata too, I'd imagine." I say, considering the possibilities.

"Heheheh. That sounds likely."

"N-Nakahara-san!"

"Makes sense to me. There are a few people you may show this to though: Kirigri, Ludenberg or Oogami for example."

"Heh, Kirigiri is at the top of the list is she?"

"I-I see…"

"Those ones are sensible and understand discretion. Of course any of them could be working with Monokuma but I doubt that would hurt us much anymore. Like I said Monokuma already knows the laptop is missing and he probably knows where to start looking for it, if he cares too, so… hold on a second…" _That voice… _"Hello Ludenberg."

"Eeeeeek!" Fujisaki shrieks.

"Hello Nakahara-san, Fujisaki." Ludenberg says with an unfazed smile.

"I suppose the cat's out of the bag now…" I say "So let's keep the explanation quick. As you can see, we have a laptop…"

"Ooooh, so that's a laptop." Ludenberg feigns a gasp. "I'm sorry Nakahara-san, I didn't realize since I've been living under a rock ever since I was born."

"Quiet Ludenberg. Being snarky is my job."

"Eheheh. Do carry on."

"Right, as I was saying, before you so rudely interrupt me, Fujisaki stole the laptop from the library and got it working. H…she's now attempting to hack the school system for clues. The rest, about Monokuma, I assumed you heard?"

"I heard enough to deduce the issue yes."

"Right, that's that then. I assume you can be discreet Ludenberg?"

"I can be."

"Please?"

"Oh alright, but only because you have manners, we do need more of those."

"Yes we do. Fujisaki, get back to work. So how did you find out about all this Ludenberg?"

"Kirigiri told me. She said you… barged into Fujisaki's room rather aggressively, quite gentlemanly of you Nakahara, and later you both headed to the bathhouse, where there isn't any surveillance camera."

"Eeeh?" Fujisaki yelps.

"Get back to work Fujisaki." I say nonchalantly "Does sound rather suspicious when you put it like that. If she thinks it's an issue though, why did she not come herself? Why did she tell you?"

"Apparently…" she says with feigned distress "Kirigiri has certain… assumptions about the nature of our… relationship."

"Eeeeeh?" Fujisaki yelps.

"Get back to work Fujisaki." I say "That's… interesting… so did she think we were…"

"…an item yes. Tell me… Nakahara-san… are we…"

"Eeeeeeeeh?" Fujisaki yelps.

"Get back to work Fujisaki." I say "And stop messing with me Ludenberg. Neither you nor Kirigiri would make leaps like that."

"Indeed." Ludenberg smiles, dropping the pretense about ever being embarrassed "She chose to tell me though so she certainly had ideas."

"Oh…" Fujisaki sounds disappointed.

"Get. Back. To. Work. Fujisaki." I put my hand on his head and squeeze. "She has a lot of those that's for sure. Fujisaki, how long until you're done…"

"I-I'm nearly done with the AI."

"…you're bloody serious?" he nods "Bloody hell your title isn't just for show. What happens when the AI is done?"

"N-Not much actually. The AI will take it from there, a-although I probably need to check how it's doing every now and then."

"Goddamn… Why did I not become a programmer Ludenberg?"

"Because a man using a computer 24/7 will end up looking like Yamada. We ladies are immune to that you see…"

"I suppose that's true…" I notice Fujisaki quickly averting his eyes, _heh heh…_

* * *

"Ahem, may I have your attention please? The time is now 10:00 PM. 'Nighttime' is now in effect. The cafeteria is now off-limits, and the door will be locked momentarily. And with that, I wish you all a good night. Sweet dreams…"

_Just in time then. _I thought as I lock the door behind me. _Aside from the laptop, and even that wasn't dealt in the optimal fashion, today hasn't been all that productive. I think I'm starting to get used to living here, and that can't be a good sign… can it? Whatever, let's see what Monokuma has to say about the DVD._ I open my drawer to find the Enoshima's DVD still missing, but in its place is a note, labeled "from Monokuma, with love~" which sort of killed the mood of comes next.

"Despair is a creature of opportunity

So there must always be a sort of unity

Thus she needs her cute little twin

To whom she must share all her sins

Because without her devious, pretty kin

Despair has little chance to win

Riddle me this, of what do I speak?

A final question, most bleak

So humor me on the riddle I've composed

Because the answer is right under your nose"

...poetic bollocks...

* * *

Nakahara Shiki's (?) Notes – Day 7 Report:  
Survivors: 14  
Facts:  
. Fujisaki has taken the laptop from the library.  
. Togami has (foolishly) announced his desire to directly participate in Monokuma's game.  
. Monokuma has presented me with his 'final question', a riddle.

Notes:  
. Monokuma definitely knows the laptop is gone and where to look for it. We're under his mercy once more, thanks to Fujisaki.  
. Togami, despite what he said, is no threat. He does not grasp the essence of the game, has the subtlety of a cow and most importantly, he feels himself invincible, the most fatal flaw of all.  
. I do not understand Monokuma's riddle. Right under my nose? Despair? Twin? It all sounds familiar but I can't put my figner on it...

* * *

That's one more chapter done. Do leave reviews. Please?  
Also I will say that it's probably unreasonable to expect anyone to solve that riddle since the answer requires you to have read something else (No it's not related to Mukuro) so here's a giant hint: what has Shiki been reading?


	15. Chapter 12

Holy shit that's a lot of reviews for one chapter (well it is for me at least). Thanks a bunch guys.  
Morli: Yeah I think I struggled with the other classmates as well, in my defense it's pretty hard juggling fourteen characters' personalities and reactions but I agree that my portrayal of them was pretty muted. I do shift PoV once a while. I plan on doing that every time there's an execution but that's probably not enough to flesh everyone out. I imagine most of them are constantly wary around him but it hasn't gotten to the point where it's active fear/admiration yet. Ludenberg, Kirigiri and Togami, the players, are cautious around him (and around each others). Really though, this is telling instead of showing so I hope to improve on that part in later chapters. Thanks for the constructive feedback as always. Glad you're liking it :).  
Guest: Thanks for pointing that out. Yeah I meant Oowada. Edited.  
Landser03: Thanks. I know how this fic will end but I haven't decided on a number of survivors yet so we'll see. I have a few characters that I decided (for now) will survive the whole thing but that's about it.  
Jin-Rimu: Thanks a lot :)! I hope to live up to your expectations!  
cipher66: Thanks. That makes last chapter the one with the most reviews right now so thanks for that as well.  
AnimesWorld: Yup, I quite liked how last chapter turned out so I was happy it's the one with the most reviews right now. Maybe Shiki would trade the stuffs for coins but putting those parts in feels a bit inconsequential so I left it out of the story. You have to admit Yamada's character just begs to be tormented (no offense to the poor man). Shiki is pragmatic and balanced, which is his edge over Togami (though I think Togami is smarter overall) so yeah he would do better here than Togami would. I wouldn't call Shiki insane. He's both amoral and sensible, although he becomes mentally unstable when excited or desperate. Shiki is whatever he feels he needs to be friend ;). You know, despite being a straight dude, I did wonder whether Shiki could be bi (he's not gay since he's into ladies as well). I imagine him to be the emotionally awkward type though. Yeah, it's unreasonable to expect that riddle to be solved by the audience so I expect no one to get it right. I too have been tossing around the idea of two separate murderers unwittingly kill in the same night so I may make use of that at some point. I've already roughly planned how the next murder will turn out though so we'll see how that goes. Nice songs, liked the first better myself.  
TheRoseShadow21: Thanks. Yeah that riddle isn't solved by using brainpower or anything so don't bother if it doesn't come to you.  
So here's Chapter 12. It's shorter than the recent ones and again focused more on character developments. Enjoy and let me know what you think.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

"That makes… everyone… it feels like our ranks have thinned out quite considerably…" Ishimaru starts off the morning on a high note.

"That's because it has." I say, nonchalantly sipping my coffee "Enoshima and Hagakure are dead and Togami and Fukawa aren't coming. So we're down to twelve people."

"You'll hear no complaint from me." Kuwata mumbles. "We're better off without those two. More space for the rest of us."

"I get Togami…" Asahina says "but wouldn't it be better if someone went and grabbed Fukawa?"

"No."

"I wouldn't."

"Let's not."

"W-we should wait…"

"N-not yet…"

_I think we have a general consensus._

"Either way…" Oowada says "that Togami asshat is the real problem. Leave that kid unchecked and I have no doubt he'll kill someone."

"I wouldn't worry about it." I say "But if you insist, There are things we can do…"

"What do you mean? We can't exactly… kill him… can we?"

"Nah, no need to go that far." I casually wave my hand._ Although if any of you want to provide us with a dead Togami, an easy trial, and thus another floor, I wouldn't refuse it. _"There are twelve of us and one of him. We have… options." I flash a grin just to mess with them a bit. "I know methods, and even if you want to keep it simple… well… he has two knee caps, ten fingers, two eyeballs and a set of unbroken teeth. All we need… a chair, a rope, a knife, a smile. Then we'll get creative…"

"I swear you're as fucked as he is…"

"I'm sure you're considering what I said seriously."

Oowada clicks his tongue. "Can't deny that…"

"Hell, I would!" Kuwata grumbles. "Someone has to do something about that asshole."

"That's taking things a bit too far…" Naegi says.

"He's right!" Ishimaru shouts. "The worst thing that could happen in a situation like this is an eruption of internal strife."

"T-That's precisely why we need to act first." Maizono argues. _Interesting… _"I-If someone dies because we were too reluctant to…"

"Hey, what's wrong, Fujisaki?" Naegi asks, stopping the conversation in its track.

"Doing a little bit… of self-loathing right now…" Fujisaki mumbles_. _"That thing with Togami yesterday… I got scared. I couldn't say anything back to him. Then Oowada ended up having to come to my rescue… I can't keep doing this... being such a weakling…"

"So it's Oowada's fault you're feeling like crap…" Asahina says. _Damn it, sensitivity, woman…_

"Huh? My fault?" Oowada asks. "I didn't mean any harm when I said that! You're a chick! Of course you're weak!"

"Oh Christ…" I grumble. "Master of tact Oowada."

"A-Are you crying?" He asks Fujisaki nervously.

"Nah, it's not your fault. Don't worry." Fujisaki mumbles.

"H-hey… I-I'm sorry… I won't yell anymore…"

"Oh reeeally?" Asahina says sarcastically.

"I-If you're gonna go there… A'ight fine! I give you my word! Man's honor!"

"Man's… honor?" Fujisaki mumbles.

"Enough of that. Don't wanna darken the mood any more than it already is. I swear I won't shout again. So don't you cry either!"

"O-Okay… Thanks, Oowada" Fujisaki beams up.

"S-Sure…" I can see him blushing... _Oowada, that's a dude. Actually let's not jump to conclusion, he may swings that way, who knows…_

"But… I can't go on like this… I've got to get stronger…I want to be strong. Maybe… I'll start working out."

"Should you choose to, I will gladly lend you my assistance whenever you want it." Oogami offers.

"Hehehehe… Th-Thanks guys…" Fujisaki smiles.

That lifts the mood here significantly. _I suppose that's a good thing? There's something twisted about his idea of strength though... Well not much to do with my time anyway, I'll talk to him about it._

* * *

**Bathhouse, Noon**

"So , how's the AI doing?" I ask, catching Fujisaki with the laptop in the bathhouse.

"Eeeeek!" He shrieks. "You scared me Nakahara-san."

"Uh-huh. Maybe you should sit somewhere less conspicuous then. Do you know how many people can walk in on you right now?"

"S-Sorry, I'll work on that."

"Please do. So as I was saying, how's the AI doing?"

He goes back to typing on the laptop. "It's doing alright I guess… the school network is really hard to crack... b-but in time…"

"Calm your tits Fujisaki. I'm not going to grade you on it or something."

"S-Sorry… You were r-really scary yesterday…"

"Was I? Oh yeah I lost my temper didn't I. Tch, how unprofessional. Rage is better used controlled and focused. Bah, what's done is done." I casually find a bench and sit down.

"Nakahara-san… you don't need to watch over me… I'm fine…"

"That's not convincing considering what happened when I walked in. And I'm just here to talk Fujisaki."

"R-Really?"

"…how rude."

"S-sorry… You just don't seem like that type you know…"

"No? Well let's fix that. You were saying you wanted to be strong?"

"Y-Yes?"

"Is it because you truly want to be strong, if by strong you meant masculine, or is it because you're a boy?"

Fujisaki goes silent for a while, biting his lips. Eventually he sets the laptop aside. "You know… I had a feeling you always knew…"

"Did you now? That's something I'll need to work on then."

Fujisaki continues as if he didn't hear what I said. "I-It makes sense right? Tell me it makes sense Nakahara-san…" I give him no response. "B-Boys are supposed to be strong, tough, m-masculine. Y-Yes, masculine, that's how boys are characterized… it's what's meant to be… B-but I'm not… I'm weak, shy, feminine… what a girl should be… S-so… would it not make sense for me to be a girl i-instead?" I hold my tongue. _I think… he's reciting what he has been told over the years… he has been told it so many times he now believes it to be the one universal truth._ "I-I can lie to them… but underneath… I'm s-still a boy… t-that's why I need to be s-strong right? I-It's not right otherwise…"

_I've heard about enough… _I reach out, grab his chin, and force him to look me in the eyes. "Fujisaki?"

"Y-Y-Yes?"

"You're a weakling, a coward and a fool, and not because you're feminine, but because you want to be masculine. You want to hear about courage, about strength? Courage is honesty. Strength is the ability to be whatever the hell you wish to be. You wish to be masculine because you're a boy? Because that's what people expect boys to be? You talk about being strong, but that's not what you're going for. You're going for conformity and acceptance. And there's nothing weaker than that."

"B-B-But I'm a b-boy…"

"Fuck. That. I'll ask you again. Do you want to be whatever the hell people think a boy should be, or do you want to be strong?"

I can see tears well up in his eyes. "I-I want to be s-s-strong… I-It's not right t-that I have to be a c-certain way because I w-was born a boy! I want to do so many things! Why should I not b-because I'm a boy! It's not fair!" He was shouting by the end. _Yes, this is good._

"Yes! That's courage! What is it that you want to do really?"

"I-I want to…"

"Then go do that! Anyone who tells you a boy shouldn't do that you tell him to piss off, or rip his eyes out, or… well… since it's you… just smile at him until he leaves or something. That is strength Fujisaki. Do whatever the hell it is that you want!"

_I… think I'm getting too worked up about this._ Fujisaki is silent for a while... but eventually beams up. "T-There is wisdom in what you said Nakahara-san… I will think on it…"

"Please do." _Christ all this psychologist business is embarrassing_, I quickly stand up.

"You're strong Nakahara-san." He says suddenly.

"Heh heh… hahahaHAHAHAHAHA" I let out a long, sarcastic, bitter laugh, follow by a blunt "No."

Fujisaki's smile was unfazed. "If you say so."

I shrug. Waving him goodbye, and head out the door, before remembering something. "Hey Fujisaki, what's Despair's twin?"

"What?" he asks, understandably confused.

"Nevermind"

* * *

**Cafeteria, Afternoon**

Lunch has just finished. I was heading out of the cafeteria to do more productive things when I notice something.

"Why are you following me Maizono?" _Oh wait, I've been here before…_ "It's my turn again is it?"

She nods.

"Huh… that will make things difficult… I'm…"

"Nakahara-kun" She interrupts me. "Please come with me, we have something to discuss."

Before I could answer, Maizono turns her back on me and head toward the school. Yesterday, there was simple resignation in her posture, now there's a hint of determination. _Something serious is going on…_ I decide to follow her. Eventually we arrive at a simple classroom. I quickly find a table to sit on. "Well?"

"Nakahara-kun. During Breakfast this morning, I believe you mentioned how you intend to 'deal' with Togami?"

"Hmm? Yeah I think I said something along the line of…"

"I agree!" She cuts in, rather aggressively too. "Something needs to be done. He can't make threats and get away with it. Our friends' survival is at risk here. We must act first. I'll help you in whatever way I can. Let's nab him and show him that we look out for our friends! He proclaimed his desire to kill us all loudly. W-we must hurt him…" _Oh dear… _"I know where to get a rope… a-and there's a k…"

"H-Hold on a second here…"

"WHAT?"

"Christ! Calm your tits Maizono!"

"Sorry sorry…" she takes a deep breath to briefly regain her composure… "So yeah, when are we going to do it?"

I let out a sigh. "When he does more than sprout out harmless threats."

"WHAT? What's the point then? Someone will be hurt by then."

"It won't get to that point yet. He'll wait and observe a few more murders and trials before making his move…"

"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT!" Maizono shouts.

"…and beside, if we act on our own, the others will not take kindly to it. Things won't be the same between us then. We'll end up being the villains here. That's not going to help anyone. We have this fragile group going and it'd be wise to stick to it for now."

"B-But what if he kills someone before we act… w-what if Naegi o-or Kuwata? Without them I don't think I can bear this place… I-I'll resort to murder again… I don't want that!"

"I doubt he would go for Kuwata… Naegi though… he did perform quite well during the last trial…" I felt like slapping myself as soon as the words left my mouth.

"If he dares I'll slit his **FUCKING **throat! I'll rip his eyes out!"

"In that order I hope?" I chuckle, attempting to lighten the mood.

She just stares at me. "No."

"Ugh… Well… the time's just not right Maizono… We need to either get the rest of them on board, or we need to wait for a better opportunity, after he starts doing things. Acting rashly will hurt the group. Beside what can he do? There's twelve of us and one of him."

"Two"

"Don't worry about Fukawa. If he succeeds she'll die as well…"

"No. That girl will gladly offer her life if he wishes her to. I can see it in her eyes. She'll need to be dealt with as well. People are irrational Nakahara-kun. She'll do it."

_There's just no pleasing this psychotic lady…_ "Alright, how about we meet halfway. I'll talk to Fukawa and try to learn more through her, or use her against him if at all possible. And you'll stop nagging me about doing dreadful things to a rich twat. Deal?"

For a while she looks like she aws going to protest but eventually gives in. "Fine... I thought you were crueler Nakahara. This makes things difficult."

"I'll be cruel when there are more benefits than setbacks for being cruel, otherwise it's ultimately pointless."

"Ever the pragmatist eh Nakahara-kun?"

I shrug "You're quite ruthless yourself."

"It's how the world works… You have to fight tooth and nail for what you want... Otherwise you will slip… All that you ever care for will be gone before you know it." She lets out a frustrated sigh. "Honestly I don't know which one of us is worse…"

"Stop worrying about such pointless matters and you'll live much more happily."

"I suppose… So, when are you going to deal with Fukawa?"

"Not today. Today it's my turn to deal with you. And after having heard what you wanted to do to a certain rich twat I won't hand you over to someone else now."

"I just want to protect my friends Nakahara-kun…"

"Of course. Come on, we have a whole day to kill." I say, getting up and heading out the door. "Oh and Maizono?"

"Yes?"

"What's despair's twin?"

"Huh?" Maizono shows no more insight than Fujisaki did.

"Nevermind."

* * *

**Shiki's Room, Evening**

"Never have I ever broken a promise." I say.

Ludenberg reaches for her glass without hesitation and drank. Maizono, after much contemplation, did the same.

"Huh… You girls are dangerous…" Kuwata says, his wine untouched.

"I-It was for practical reasons I swear!" Maizono argues.

Ludenberg, on the other hand, keeps a shameless smile "It was more beneficial for me at the time, and my benefits always take top priority you see."

"Of course" I dismiss. "Your turn Kuwata"

As you can see, me, Maizono, Kuwata and Ludenberg are having a drinking game. See, socializing got awkward real quick with me following Maizono at all time, so we decided to just laze inside my room until the curfew comes. Kuwata, however, takes issue with her being with me alone in my room so he decided to tag along, that is to say, barge into my room without permission. Ishimaru, then, takes issue with two men being in the same room with a girl because it's apparently 'unseemly' so Ludenberg herself volunteered to join us.

I was going to just read while they do their things but apparently that got too boring for them. After we ran out of things to talk about, we tried card games. But with Ludenberg around that idea went out the window real quick… I swear she's cheating but it's my personal belief that cheating is completely justified so long as you don't get caught, and Ludenberg never gets caught. Eventually we got tired of losing so Ludenberg suggests a drinking game and here we are.

Now, we have a bottle of wine (which I'm betting Ludenberg stole from the kitchen somehow) and a glass in front of each of us. The game is simple, each person takes turn, saying something they've never done and whoever has done that thing drinks a whole glass of wine. If no one drinks, the person whose turn it is drinks. We've spent quite a while on the game so far. Ludenberg seems as lively as she was when we started out. Kuwata is a bit on edge. Maizono is getting increasingly drunk. I'm still okay, sort of.

So yes, it's Kuwata's turn. "Never… have I ever kissed another man." He says as Ludenberg quickly refills the empty glasses.

The issue here is that due to my amnesia I have no idea whether I've done the thing they say or not. I trust my instinct here though. If my hand feels like it wants to reach out for the glass then I'll just assume I've done that in the past. My hand could not be tugged tighter into my pockets right now.

"How dull…" Ludenberg says before downing yet another glass of wine again within seconds. _Christ that woman knows how to drink. _"I'll need to show you the optimal way of playing the game Kuwata." _That's not a good sign..._

"Um… right… Maizono?" Kuwata says.

"N-Never have I ever… kissed another girl." Maizono says.

"You two got to stop playing it safe at some point." I say, drinking out of my glass.

"Oh you have Nakahara-san? Tell me about it!"

"A family relative or something I'm sure…" _I think…_

Maizono seems like she was about to say something but was understandably distracted by the sight of Ludenberg drinking yet again…

"Ehehehe…" Ludenberg giggles.

"You know I can somehow picture you kissing a girl…" I say.

"Don't picture it!" Maizono protests.

"Haha… A-Anyway…" Kuwata says. _I'm certain he just pictured it._ "It's your turn Ludenberg."

She quickly refills the glass. "Never have I ever contemplated murdering someone here." _Thanks for keeping an upbeat tone Ludenberg…_

"I call bullshit on that." I say. She just smiles. The other two seems uneasy. _I take it back, do play it safe guys._ After a while, I reach out for the glass and drink. Having seen someone done it first the other two drank their glass as well, avoiding eye contacts the whole time. _Honesty is good..._

"Birds of a feather no?" Ludenberg comments drinking her glass as well.

"That's not how the game works Ludenberg, you're supposed to…"

"Your turn Nakahara-san."

I let out a sigh. "Never have I ever gone through a whole day without lying."

The gambler among us predictably keeps her hands to herself. Maizono half reaches out for the glass, before deciding to be honest. Kuwata does the same.

"Ugh" I groan, drinking my glass. "Birds of a feather indeed."

"Everyone does it." Ludenberg says, giggling. "Some people are just better at it."

"Of course you would say that Ludenberg."

"Of course I would. Your turn Kuwata."

"Never have I ever…" He starts, reconsiders, then decides to go with it anyway. "Damn it… Never have I ever been good at the things I truly enjoy."

The girls remain unmoved. _Ludenberg may be in front of us right now but I think Yasuhiro's the one who's actually playing._ _Guess I'm the odd one out then._ I drink. "Surprising" I mutter "Maizono".

"Never have I ever… Never have I ever been romantically involved…"

The three of us remain unmoved. "This is just sad…" I frown. "I thought at least you would have had Ludenberg. What's with the kisses then?"

"Stories for another day" she replies "Drink, Maizono"

Maizono reluctantly does so. "I don't think she can take much more Ludenberg" I say.

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained." She refills the glass. "Never have I ever loved another person more than myself."

The other two seem to want to reach out to their glasses, to say it's not true. They never did. I didn't either. "This was supposed to be a fun drinking game Ludenberg." I complain. "These confessions are getting increasingly uncomfortable."

"It's almost curfew. Beside I thought the Super High-School Informant would appreciate these dirty secrets." She downs her glass quickly. "Your turn Nakahara."

_Might well play along. _"Never have I ever felt the desire to be anyone other than me."

"Lucky you." Kuwata says bitterly, drinking his glass.

Maizono seems to have difficulty saying anything at this point so she simply drank. Ludenberg downs her glass silently.

"You too Ludenberg?" Kuwata asks.

She ignores him. "Your turn"

"Never have I ever… Never have I ever killed another human being. Ugh that was stupid of me, sorry." He quickly drinks. Right then I felt like reaching out for my glass but stopped myself in time. _Not now…_

"Never have I ever…" Maizono says, before coughing violently. "Sorry… Never have I ever felt regret for anything I've done."

_Bold. The drink must be getting to her._ When she realizes none of us are going to drink to that, she mutters "…heh heh… birds of a feather…" and downs her glass.

"Never have I ever contemplated suicide." Ludenberg says bluntly.

"What the fuck Celes?" Kuwata shouts.

"I just felt you all had too much wine so I'm just killing time at this point. Obviously no one was going to…"

_Why did she stop? Oh…_

Before I knew it, I've already reached out for my glass. The object feels cold against my palm, cold and heavy. I gaze at the glass and my reflection stares back at me, and I thought what a cheerful fellow he is. I sit there for a while, contemplating. The others say nothing. They stared at me as though I'm holding a bomb in front of me. The weight of the wine is making my hand tired…

…so I drink. Had I been poetic I would say the wine tasted bitter, that it burns against my throat. It didn't though, the wine was almost tasteless.

* * *

You know I've never actually had alcohol before...  
Hope you liked it and leave reviews if you've got time.  
Next chapter might take a while. One or two more until the next murder begins.


	16. Chapter 13

Guest: lol I wouldn't know. Never had wine myself. Shiki was indirectly responsible for the last two deaths as well you might be on to something there.  
Morli: Thanks. These chapters is the equivalent of the game's free-time-events so yeah, the main plot takes a back seat for now so I can develop the side characters more. I plan on putting Naegi in the spotlight at some point yes, it's just that since his personality is incredibly passive I find it hard to develop him as his own character before he shows his competence at the trials. Shiki was stuck on the last chapter's riddle so he just asks random people, almost as an afterthought. He doesn't expect to get anything worthwhile out of that but you know, why not.  
TheRoseShadow21: Maizono and Kuwata both attempted murder. Celes and Shiki both had shady backgrounds. You think being underage will stop them from having a bit of wine XD? (That and Monokuma technically allow sex within the dorm so he wouldn't raise a fuss over some alcohol) Yeah I think that makes sense. The weight of the glass symbolized hardship (sort of) while the taste of the wine symbolized how he sees his own life (forgive me if that got a bit pretentious). The riddle requires you to have read something else not related to Dangan Ronpa so it wasn't meant for the readers to solve in the first place (you can google the answer if you want to, it's not THAT relevant to the main plot). Yeah I think that's Shiki's (and my) interpretation of Taeko as well, he just hasn't said it yet.  
Jin-Rimu: Thanks!  
cipher66: I don't think they'd like to dwell on it first thing in the morning with a hangover. I don't intend to drop the thing entirely though, but it may take a while to get back to that particular subject. Glad you liked it! What's some P?  
AnimesWorld: I can relate, been pretty busy recently myself. I'm pretty sure Genocider Syo never met Togami before the events in Dangan Ronpa so yeah (not that she would need such excuses to start murdering). Oh sure Shiki will provide a kiss if it makes Fujisaki's programming more efficient ;). No idea how I'd categorize Maizono right now but she's certainly the impulsive type. Everyone can use a bit more control friend. They could also go for the kneecaps solution had they the sense/amorality of Shiki. Wouldn't know about alcohol myself but Shiki would make the most out of that situation ;). P.s. Nice song again.  
Nearly a week since the last chapter. I think this is the longest gap I've had between updates. Anyway, chapter 13 is here, it's not terribly exciting yet, that's for next chapter. Hope you like it though.

* * *

**Chapter 13**

**Cafeteria, Morning**

"…AHAHAHAHAHAHA…"

"…GAHAHAHAHAHAHA…"

Friend, those two hideous sounds would be the laughter of Ishimaru and Oowada. Lord knows what the hell happened yesterday because this morning they marched into the cafeteria, arms in arms, laughing loud enough to burst a dozen eardrums. The two apes then proceeded to talk about absolutely nothing and managed to get a dozen more laughs out of even that. I'd like to figure out what caused this atrocity but frankly, after what happened last night, I can't be arsed anymore.

"Uuuuuggggh…" _that would be Kuwata._ Maizono on the other hand wisely keep her mouth shuts. Though how she does when she looks like she's half a second away from vomiting is beyond me.

"Oh dear me…" Ludenberg says in feigned surprise. "It seems some of us don't deal with hangovers too well."

"This is **entirely** your fault Ludenberg…" I mumble. The other two chimes in incoherently. They may well be speaking the moon people's language. _Appreciate the intellectual support guys…_

"Is it? You seem to be taking it quite well considering."

"Not well enough…" I glare at the two laughing apes in the room and think to myself how much two bullets can improve this situation. Three more bullets and we'll also be rid of the hangover problem.

"More importantly, what do you think about today's morning announcement?" Ludenberg asks.

"What do you mean? Those announcements don't register into my brain anymore. The hangover didn't help that any..."

"Figures. Check the school rules Nakahara."

I quickly boot up my ElectroID. Kuwata mumbles something next to me.

"I think it's trying to communicate." Ludenberg whispers mockingly.

"I think so as well." I reply.

"I-I think…" Maizono coughs "…sorry… we would appreciate it greatly if you could read it out loud for us… It's difficult to even…" more coughing and groaning "…yeah…"

I frown, find what Ludenberg was talking about, and read aloud. "If there happens to be more than one villain before there's a trial, the villain with the higher body count counts as the true villain. If both villains killed the same number of people, the one with the majority votes will be executed. If neither villain has the majority votes, I'll flip a coin or something. Jesus you kids have a knack for finding tiny loopholes… hold on there's another one… Unless there is only a single killer, a dead killer no longer count as a villain… yeah, that's it. Two new rules. What you were talking about Ludenberg?"

"Yes. A friendly warning: Someone's plotting and this time it's likely that more than one of us will die."

"'You kids have a knack for finding tiny loopholes'. Yes, someone asked about this specifically." _I have a few guesses as to who did _"Appreciate it Ludenberg."

"Heh heh. You performed rather well last trial. It would be a shame if we end up lacking such a valuable asset next time a murder occurs."

"A mistake on my part that was." I frown. "Now any murderer with sense will have his potential targets narrowed down to roughly four or five people. The same four or five people who showed competence during the first trial"

"Indeed" Ludenberg flashes a half-smile "For example, if I'm going to kill anyone I'd kill you Nakahara."

"A fair choice. Personally I'd go for Kirigiri myself. Not that it really matters since you're going to end up killing anyone anyway."

"Please stop…" Kuwata grumbles "…I honestly can't deal with this right now…"

"It speaks!" Ludenberg gasps. I chuckle quietly but otherwise gave in to Kuwata's request. I begin to close my eyes to get away from the two laughing apes and formulate a plan for the day before I feel a finger poking my shoulder.

"What is it Maizono? It's Ludenberg's and Kirigiri's turn today…"

Maizono, her chin laying flat on the table, is having difficulty putting a coherent sentence together. So she ditches the idea entirely. "Y-Yesterday…"

"What of yesterday? The drinking game?" She shakes her head "The talk in the classroom?" She nods. "We had this discussion already woman, it's too early to…" shakes her head "Uh… the business with Fukawa then?" nods "Bollocks, forgot about that one… Can I postpone that? The woman has an inferiority complex the size of the moon and I'll have an easier time piloting a jet using only my toes than trying to form a reasonable conversation with that one." Maizono just glares at me, her face sulking in that 'you promised' way. I quickly ditch the idea of trying to weasel my way out of the grave I dug myself. "Fine fine… Later today then…" This satisfied her. Maizono's face immediately meets the table once more.

"Gahaha! What're you talkin' about brah?"

"Hahaha! You're the one who should quit fooling around brohan!"

"W-What?" Naegi is understandably confused, having just walked in to the cafeteria.

"Good question." I say. "If you could provide any explanation for this strange phenomenon we would be eternally grateful."

"Yo Naegi!"

"You have my gratitude, Naegi, for serving as our witness last night!"

"So you're the one responsible for this mess…" Asahina frowns.

"You have our eternal resentment." Ludenberg says.

"B-But I…" Naegi stammers.

"You're wasting your breath friend…" Ishimaru says. "They could never understand the depth of two men's bonds. Unlike women, a man's friendship is thicker than blood!"

_Clearly not as thick as the men themselves…_

* * *

**Hope's Peak Academy's Second Floor, Noon**

I let out a long sigh as I arrive at my destination. _Negotiation__ with Genocider Syo, a thrilling prospect indeed…_ _Well, this grave I dug myself. Chin up Shiki. One can't have everything._ I take a deep breath…

"N-Nakahara!"

_Speak of the devil…_ "Hello Fukawa."

"I-I guess you'll do…" she mumbles to herself. "Nakahara… I-I want to ask you a favor… T-There's somewhere I'd like you to go… with me…"

_Not a question you want to be asked by Genocider Syo… _"Where?"

"U-Ummm… the library."

_Oh? That's a safe location actually. _"Why? Togami won't take kindly to someone diverting his attention from his book… What?"

"Y-You can keep a secret, can't you? D-Don't tell anyone about… this!"

"M'lady, keeping secrets is my job." _Also selling secrets… Tee. Hee._

"Then let's go!" She says, perhaps too loudly. "To the library!"

We then head toward the library. It would have been a hell of a lot quicker had Fukawa not insisted we tiptoe our way there. _Is this an opportunity perhaps? I do need something from her. A favor for a favor? We'll see…_

"There he is…" Fukawa whispers as we arrive outside the library. _The woman sounds orgasmic…_ "Ahaha… he's really there… Go on, Nakahara. Say something to him."

"Huh?"

"H-Hey! Not so loud! H-Hurry up… and say something!"

"Woman. Face him. Put one foot in front of the other until you're in front of him. Then open your mouth and talk! Why the hell am I here?"

"I-If I say something… it'll seem like I'm the one interrupting him!"

"You're the one who's interrupting him!"

"Shut up! J-Just go!"

_This woman…_ _Whatever._ I casually put my hands in my pocket and walk toward Togami. "Togami. Fukawa wants me to say something to you so here I am." I can hear her yelp.

"You're starting to piss me off..." Togami says, his eyes still on the book.

_Bollocks to this. _"Oh woe is me. I pissed off the great Togami. Suck it up you pompous asshat." I can see the corner of his eye twitching.

"**Out**. You too."

Fukawa finally steps inside. "Hey, uh… Togami? You told me not to become a woman who manipulates weaker men, but whom stronger men manipulate." _What the hell?_

"I said no such thing."

"I-I wrote that line. It sounded like something you would say…" _No it bloody doesn't…_

"Get out. And take a goddamn bath, too. You reek." Fukawa looks speechless. "Don't make me repeat myself. **Get. Out.** You're going to make the whole room stink…"

"Y-Yes sir…" She finally concedes.

We leave the library and close the door behind us to give Togami his sweet privacy. "Rude bastard…" I mumble. "You can't say you didn't expect that though."

"I can't believe… Togami…" she mumbles. "…cares so much about me!"

"…what?"

"H-He was so concerned for me… that he told me… to take a bath!"

"He said you reek." _Reek, reek it rhymes with meek. Heh heh…_

I don't think Fukawa registered what I said. "What do you think Nakahara? Do you think Togami and I… would be a good pairing?"

_Oh Christ…_ _Smile and nod Shiki. Smile and nod._

"Aaaaaah…. I knew it! Y-You know…distance is irrelevant in love!" _Got that right. You're a few meters away from him and his heart might well be on the other side of one of Mars's moons._ "The moment you feel it, it's already taken root… That's just how love is!" _Smile and nod Shiki. _"I-I'm sure you'll understand one day… eventually. So long, then."

I quickly put a hand on her shoulder. "I think not. We have something to discuss."

"Huh? W-What?"

"You see… We all think Togami is dangerous. He's willing to kill off all of us just to win Monokuma's little game. That, of course, includes you."

"I-It's his right… He's strong. He's wise. He's entitled to do this! You're all his rightful pawns! Be grateful Togami Byakuya has graced you with his mere presence you… you plebeian! I-I for one… would kill to receive such honor!"

_Oh for fuck's sake…_ "Of course of course… You're completely right. Togami the alpha lion has that right. We live because he allows it. We'll die when he demands it. I understand that fact completely well." _I'm utterly shocked she seems to be buying what I said…_ "But… do you think the others will take it? There are eleven of them and only three of us…"

"W-What do you mean? T-They can't be…"

"I'm afraid so… Just the other day they were talking about tying him up and torturing the poor man… Some even suggested locking him up and let him starve just to avoid another trial… It was just… just wrong. It took me all morning to convince them to wait, to try to understand…"

"W-What!? How could they… Byakuya-sama…"

"I know Fukawa. It's wrong to rise above one's status. We are his rightful subjects. How can we even think about rebelling? But they wouldn't listen… They needed some sort of assurance… That's why I'm here Fukawa. Don't you see? I'm trying to protect him. If you… if you can just report to me if he ever does anything suspicious… I'll try to hide it before the others actually go through with this atrocity. Please… we can't fight them. This is the only thing we can do to keep Byakuya-sama safe…" _I'll need to clean my tongue with soap after this…_

"Y-Yes Nakahara… I understand… This is the only way… I-I'll comply for now. A-Anything for Byakuya-sama… Perhaps when a few of those worthless commoners so kindly die off, we'll let Byakuya-sama earn his rightful victory…"

"Thank god… I'm so glad you understood Fukawa!"

"I-I always knew you were one of us Nakahara! You're one of the few who actually deserves to revels in Byakuaya-sama's greatness."

"Such thing is above one of my status I'm afraid… but thank you for your kind words." _If I have to talk like this for another second I'll seriously hang myself._ "I apologize but I need to be off now. The others may change their mind. I must keep them in check." I turn around and walk back, before remembering something. "Fukawa-san, what's Despair's twin?"

"H-Huh?"

"Nevermind."

* * *

**Shiki's Room, Night**

"Ahem. May I have your attention please? Nighttime is soon approaching, but before then… Everyone please report to the gymnasium, on the double. Emergency! Emergency!"

_I was starting to wonder when he'd start with another one of those… Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later._ I quickly head toward the gymnasium. _Someone will die soon._

The room is filled with the remaining students. Their usual bickering hasn't gone anywhere yet.

"Hahaha… Just as I was starting to get bored…" Togami says.

"Hmm. Yes. Your boredom is truly a fatal issue. Can't have that. Someone should die to remedy this." I reply.

"I'm more concerned about the fact that he can laugh at all right now!" Asahina says.

"You don't want to live here, but you don't want to kill anyone." Togami replies "You've rejected every option given to you and are just wasting away your time – without a goal. I'm amazed you can live with yourselves like that."

"I-I have an idea or two…"

"Ah, yes. Weren't you going on about how you were so certain the police would come and save us? How'd that ever turn out? I don't see any evidence of us having been rescued"

"W-Well, uh… What's going on with that?"

"Good question…" I say "It is rather peculiar…"

"The police couldn't possibly overlook something like this happening in a school in the middle of the city." Kirigiri assesses.

"Perhaps Monokuma just has so much power he can control even the law enforcement…" Ludenberg suggests.

"H-Hey… I know this is irrelevant…" Maizono starts.

"Then keep your mouth shut." Togami says.

"Quiet. Speak, Maizono" I say.

"Y-Yesterday… While I was at the entrance hall, I heard something…" Maizono continues.

"What did you hear?" Fujisaki asks.

"I-I'm not sure… I-I think it sounded something like a construction site… B-But it might have been my imagination. I could barely hear it."

"A construction huh? I've never heard of anything like that near Hope's Peak…" Naegi says.

"What, what? Whacha talkin' about?" Monokuma finally shows his face. "Maizono didn't hear construction sounds. She heard explosions and stuffs. Like machine guns firing… Upupu, they're not unlike sounds you might hear at a construction site…"

"Explosions? Firearms?" I wonder out loud. "Could there be a bigger issue outside? Is the police occupied by supposedly more important things? Is that why we're still here?"

"Upupupu. My lips are zipped, and I've thrown away the key!"

"Then at least tell us this. Why did you want us all to come here?" Kirigiri asks.

"Ooooh. Straight to business. Strong woman. I like that! But first thing first: I've got complaints of my own. I've been feelin' kinda blue lately… My stitches are comin' loose, and I'm not as bright as I used to be… I think the problem is… I'm bored out of my mind. If ya don't mind me being blunt about it, this sucks! We need another villain up here, like, now! So I've decided to present you guys with your next incentive!"

"Whoopie fucking doo…" I say.

"Incentives?" Naegi asks "Like those videos? Are you saying you're going to show us something crazy again and try to incite another murder?"

"No one else is going to kill!" Ishimaru shouts "Try whatever you want, it's not happening!"

"That's nice. Give it your best shot." Monokuma dismisses "Anyway, the theme of today's incentive is shameful memories and deep dark secrets! Everyone has a few, so I've taken it upon myself to do a little digging and uncover all the skeletons in you guys' closets!" He holds up fourteen envelopes for all of us to see. "I will be distributing these in just a moment, so check out what I've dug up on you!" He then tosses the envelope at our feet.

Can't exactly peek at the others' envelope here in the gymnasium… Having no better option I pick up the one with my name and open.

_'Your job here is over.'_

_…Interesting, to say the least. Does he mean the job I took when I came to Hope's Peak? The one where I have to protect all my classmates? Over huh? I guess that makes sense. The person who hired me said they must all live, and two of them died within one week. Guess I failed… Why do I feel nothing about this? I take my jobs seriously. In theory I should be frustrated with myself by now… then why…_

"What!?"

"W-Why?"

"How did you discover this?!"

Gasps, grunts, yelps. The expected.

"You've got 24 hours! If I don't have a new villain by then, I'm going to tell the whole world everyone's deepest, darkest secrets!" Monokuma announces.

"This is your incentive?" Naegi asks.

"Y'all don't want yer dirty laundry out fer everyone to see, do ya?"

"While that's not something I want people to know about. I wouldn't kill someone just to prevent it from getting out!"

"Exactly!" Ishimaru loudly agrees. "You're a fool to think otherwise! No one would murder anyone over something so trivial!"

"Well crap… I just thought this was a great way to… you know… I guess this means nobody's going to die! Laaaaame…" Monokuma complains half-heartedly. "That awkward moment when you realize it was all for nothing… Gonna go cry myself to sleep now…" He slowly retreats to the far end of the gym and disappear

"I was kind of scared at first but it looked like we dodged a bullet." Asahina says.

"Did we really?" I ask. The others stay silent._  
_

"Soldiers, I have a proposition…" Ishimaru starts "Let's get this out of the way now and all reveal our secrets to one another! It's a great idea if I do say so myself! I'll go first!"

I'll stay out of this. I'm clearly the odd one out here. Let's go with the flow for now…

"Count me out!" Fukawa cuts in "I don't want to tell."

"Huh?"

"Even if I wanted to share… it's not possible."Ludenberg says.

"That makes us all curious." Yamada says. "It's human nature. So please, do tell…"

"No."

"Come on, it's not hard. Just tell us!"

"Again…"

"Say it, say it, say it!"

"**I said I don't wanna talk about it, you fucking putrid sack of lard!**" Ludenberg shouts suddenly.

"Eeeeeeeeeek!"

"I concur." Togami says. "There's no need for me to reveal anything."

"Looks like we have a general consensus..." I start, knowing full well quite a few of them will never tell in a million years. "Keep your door locked and sleep with one eye opened."

"W-Well… No one here is going to commit a murder over something as trivial as this…" Ishimaru says, trying to convince himself of it more than anything. "Having our pasts put on display is shameful, but that shame weighs far less than another human's life!"

We then hear Monokuma's curfew announcement, telling us nighttime is now in effect.

"A-anyway…" Kuwata starts. "It's quite late… let's just call it a night, get some rest…"

Oogami agrees. "We should all use this time to prepare for tomorrow."

We all disperse to our rooms with doubts. Knowing how some of them keep their secrets, I don't share the others' optimism. _No, someone will die tonight, and all I can do is get a good night sleep to prepare for tomorrow's inevitable trial._

* * *

Nakahara Shiki's (?) Notes – Day 9 report:  
Survivors: 14 (?)  
Facts:  
. Two new school rules have been added regarding the possibility of multiple villains.  
. Monokuma has provided his second incentive: each of our secret. Within one day, if there isn't a villain, all our secrets will be revealed to the world.

Notes:  
. Someone's planning a murder perhaps? Or was that two rules added due to someone's simple curiosity?  
. The others are optimistic that no one will kill. I'm positive someone will.  
. Fukawa has agreed to tell me if Togami ever does anything suspicious. Loads of good that will do. Hopefully Maizono'll stop nagging me about this at least.  
. No progress on the riddle. This is getting frustrating.  
. 'My job here is over'? What does that mean? That I failed? Something's off...

* * *

I thought that was a bit filler-ish for the most part. Still, hope you enjoyed that. I have an idea where I'm going next so next chapter may come quicker. No promises though. I'd greatly appreciate reviews, thanks.  
Also, something has been bothering me for a while. Chapter 3 (that's the 5th chapter if you count the prologue and chapter 3.5) has more than twice the amount of views comparing to the one coming before and after it. This is definitely not an issue or anything but the phenomenon is keeping me awake every night, trying to work this pointless question out. Not really of course but if anyone has any idea what's happening there I'd love to know. This is my first fic and I don't get around the website all that much so maybe it's completely normal and I'm just being a newbie.


	17. Chapter 14

Jin-Rimu: Thanks! Talking more about Shiki's secret would be spoiling, though I will say that it's there more to mess with him rather than to reveal to everyone else. Rest assure its greater significance will be revealed somewhere down the line. I do have a few more of Shiki's edgy stuffs coming at some point so there's also that to look forward to.  
TheRoseShadow21: That's the odd thing for me. That chapter was a filler-ish, and right now it has at least 80 views more than the one before or after it. That's quite a few people re-reading that particular one over and over, which makes me happy but also confused. As for Chihiro, let's see…  
Sxilenced: Thanks for the exceedingly kind words friend :)! That made my day! As for following the main storyline, I aim to break off that pattern slowly as the student population gets trimmed down so that part may get better over time. I do have a clear ending in my head and mentally tweak it a bit every day so hopefully this one will give you the closure you wanted. I aim to put out at least one update a week but obviously if I feel it's unfinished I won't make myself publish it in that state. Anyway, I'm really glad you're so invested in my story! Seriously every time I get one of these I feel like writing for the rest of the day! P.s. That's a very interesting theory you have. I will say no more ;).  
AnimesWorld: He might also pass for SHSL Con Man ;). Once a while I like to vastly overestimate myself and think of new OCs if I'm ever going to do this again for Dangan Ronpa 2 (which I have not played), and one of my main ideas is SHSL Trickster, might be quite close to your idea, who knows (just clearing it up, your idea may still be correct, or it may not). Fukawa certainly has issues, and we'll see a lot more of those in due time. I don't think she even meant half the things she says though. I'm not entirely sure how to go about with the executions yet. Before I write that part I'll look at the wiki page or youtube again and see whether I can come up with a more fitting one. P.S. Pretty good songs. I don't take time out to look up non-English songs (that aren't in any anime that I watch anyway) but I do have quite a few Korean songs I liked so hell why not.  
electricange112: I can imagine someone suggesting that after having a few too many drinks with Celes and by the end of the day she also happen to be the only one with clothes on XD. A tempting idea, though I may not be the most well equipped person to write those, I don't even know how to play poker, let alone the stripping... I'm not ruling it out just yet though, and do have a few ideas if I ever decide run with it.  
So here's Chapter 14. Took a lot longer than I expected, but at least this is the longest chapter yet (at least 1000 more words than the last longest one). Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 14**

"Good morning"

"…"

"**Good morning Shiki-kun!**"

"Morning Monokuma…"

The obnoxious little bear in front of me let out a condescending sigh. "That was the worst response I've had all morning Shiki-kun… You should have seen Naegi's reaction! Now that was worth getting up early to personally…"

"Get off my bed, bear."

"E-Even after last night? That's just cruel Shiki-kun!"

"Get off my bed."

He eventually got off with his head hanging down, looking depressed.

"Why are you in here bear?"

"Oh you know… I just wanted to tell you something… but since you're like that…"

"Talk."

"Upupupupu. Aren't you a bit too relaxed?"

"No I'm not." _Might well say it myself._ "Something happened last night. Am I right?"

"Bingo!"

I let out a tired sigh. "Balls…"

"Upupupu. You react to that news in the same manner a student would react to some extra homework."

"Get out."

"Oooooh. Scary. You're just like Togami…"

_Alright that's the last draw. _"**Out!**"

"Eeeeek!" shrieks Monokuma as he sprints out of my room. _Didn't think that would work…_

With that little shit out of the way, I get dressed, wash up and head toward the cafeteria.

_As expected, the incentive from last night produced a result, most likely a murder, as Monokume would have hoped. However, I expect this to be different from last time. This time, they've experience what happens after a murder. They know about the trial. Evidence will be harder to find as any culprit with sense will no doubt do something about that. Not to mention the choice of victim… Maizono's intended victim was, presumably, random, as was Enoshima's, though for a different reason. This time however, with the trial in mind, the murderer would go for someone smart, someone who excels during investigation and debates. Since I'm not dead, that narrows the list down to only… four people during the last trial. Could… No. No sense assuming the worst. But what if… No! One thing at a time. We must gather and decide on a course of action._

"N-Nakahara!" Maizono calls out as I enter the room.

"Thank god you're alright…" Naegi exclaims.

"Maizono. Naegi." I greet.

"Y-You came here because of what he said too?" Asahina asks.

"Yes."

"We were about to start searching for the others." Oogami says.

"Yeah… Now we have one less to find at least." Kuwata says.

I quickly glance around the room. Naegi, Maizono, Kuwata, Oogami, Asahina, Togami. "Seven out of fourteen." I say aloud.

"D-Do you think one of the others could have..." Naegi asks nervously.

"Cut that out!" Asahina interupts. "There's no way someone could kill another person over a stupid memory. We'll find all seven of the others and this will turn out to be a giant false alarm. Let's not assume the impossible worst possibility!"

"A murder? Worst possibility?" I ask. "Hardly…"

"W-What do you mean?"

"Think about it. A murder is only half the battle. The villain will also have to go through the trial. The fewer survivors there are, the smaller his chance at getting caught. And no one said anything about a limit to the body count."

"N-No way…"

"He speaks sense." Oogami considers what I said. "That girl, Enoshima, killed the simplest one among us because she did not know about the trial." _Yes, and Oogami here, had she the will, could kill all of us within seconds and skip the trial altogether._

"Enough of this." Togami starts "How about we stop squabbling about pointless things and…"

"Seven?" Ludenberg enters the room, followed by many others. "Seems we're in a bit of a predicament."

"L-Ludenberg!" I exclaim.

"Celes caught a few of the others exiting their rooms and got them searching the rest of the school." Kirigiri explains. "We knew the ones she missed would head straight for the cafeteria so here we are."

"G-Good thing is…" Ishimaru says. "…even though we searched everywhere, there were no corpses to be found! I knew you soldiers would not be swayed by such petty trick!"

"Y-Yeah…" Oowada agrees nervously. "That's given bro. Like anyone would kill for that…"

"I wouldn't be so sure…" Ludenberg says. "Is this all the students who didn't accompany my group to look for the others?" We nod uncertainly. "I have only four people with me."

"We have seven…" Naegi mumbles.

"Twelve out of fourteen." I quickly point out the uncomfortable fact. "We're missing two people."

"Y-Yamada and Fujisaki!" Maizono exclaims. _Goddamn it not Fujisaki!_

"W-We have to split up… a-and…" Ishimaru starts.

Ding. Dong. Monokuma appears on nearby monitor. "Uuuum… We have an issue here… Normally I'd make this announcement after at least three of you have found a corpse. I'm afraid… that won't be possible. So… umm… yeah… this is kinda embarrassing… So yeah, there's a killer or two or three among you, do whacha gotta do. Also, since there are no body I can't give you any files on the corpses either. Monokuma out!" The monitor switches off, leaving us all in silence, before switching back on awkwardly. "Oh yeah, before any of you accuse me of playing favorites I'll have you know none of you have gone anywhere beyond the space I've opened up to y'all. Alright, that's it. Out for real this time! See y'all at the trial!" and he's out again.

"…what the fuck was that?" Kuwata breaks the silence after roughly half a minute.

"Monokuma." I answer.

"I know that!"

"Then stop asking that question."

"Can we assume Fujisaki and Yamada are dead?" Kirigiri asks.

"Most likely."

"…d-dead?" Asahina stutters. "B-But how?"

"Yesterday's incentive no doubt." Togami replies.

"How can you be so calm?!"

"By not being a goddamn moron."

"B-But… just over an embarrassing memory…" Ishimaru mumbles in disbelief.

"Fujisaki and Yamada are dead..." Oowada mumbles. "Whoever's responsible... I'll **fucking kill **whoever's responsible!"

"C-Calm down bro... We can't lose our heads in these situations..."

"H-He's not wrong though..." Kuwata grumbles. "The asshole who killed Fujisaki deserves nothing less than death!"

"Instead of grieving... you all decide to be angry instead!?" Asahina asks.

"Grief... What do I do with grief? Anger is useful! Anger gets shits done! We'll mourn her later. We can't crack this case with tears in our eyes..." That created another oppressive silence for a while.

"The interesting thing is that he was certain we would not find the corpse." Ludenberg wonders aloud. "Ideas?" Nobody had any. _Well I'm sure the culprit has an idea… I know you're among us, killer, and this one… this one won't slide..._

"The question is why hide the corpse at all?" Kirigiri asks. "A corpse isn't necessarily evidence. It can be used as misdirection, distraction, false evidence. Moreover, all this is both easier and more beneficial than getting rid of a corpse entirely in a closed environment. Intriguing…"

"Always keep your opponent confused." Ludenberg grins. "Sometimes the most beneficial thing one can do is also the least beneficial. Your enemy will fumble, desperately trying to understand the logic behind your absurd action where there is truly none. And you, you are free from his ever cautious gaze, free to continue marching toward victory while he tries to look for a motive that doesn't exist. Perhaps our villain knows how to play the game." Then she shrugs. "Or perhaps he's just a magnificent fool."

"I'd much rather it be the latter." I frowns.

"I'd much rather it be the former." Togami smiles. "This game needs its players, and what precious few we have better be good at it."

"Sorry to interrupt your crazy talks but that went straight over my head." Oowada mumbles.

"Impressive it doesn't get caught in your hair." I grin. _Oh come on look at his hair. Such crime against good taste deserves to be mocked._

"Y-You…"

"Sorry to interrupt your witty banter but we have two corpses to find." Ludenberg cuts in.

"You said it yourself." Kuwata says in frustration. "Monokuma was sure we wouldn't find the bodies, what's there to look for?"

"Whatever will get us through the trial. Or have you grown bored with living?"

"…fair enough."

"It's decided then. We'll split up and look for clues, just like last time, and pray that we find enough to unmask the villain."

"W-What if we don't?" Maizono asks.

"Then just pray."

* * *

**Investigation**

**Yamada's Room**

"There really isn't much to see here is there?" Naegi asks absentmindedly. Right now we're investigating the room of one the two supposed victims. Really though there is little to nothing useful here except bad doujins and manga. Actually scratch that there is little to nothing useful here. His room also has posters, figurines and anime/manga/game character designs. Bathroom is likewise completely normal. Allow myself to mentally vent my frustration because the room is messy as hell and going through these badly placed stuffs to find absolutely nothing is infuriating. It's like his otaku-ness conjured a mini-tornado here to keep his room messy enough just to satisfy the otaku stereotype.

"Nothing that would help with the investigation no." I answer "It's bizarre… you'd think a dead man's room would at least leave some sort of traces. This room gives the impression that he's just out for lunch and will be back any minute now… Have you any idea why anyone would murder Yamada specifically? Like most of the others he performed rather poorly during that last trial…"

Naegi stops and thinks about it. "I… can't think of a reason… I talked to him before and he seems pretty harmless to me... Eccentric but I can't see him posing a threat to anyone..."

"Right right. Could anyone bear a grudge against him?"

"Umm... he seems to have some sort of semi-rivalry going on with Fukawa but that can't possibly be a motive..."

"Is he in possession of something none of the others have?"

"Huh? Well aside from the obvious things that come with his title… hold on a second… he's in charge of waste disposal. He has the key to the garbage room."

_Is that so? Waste disposal huh… What does the culprit need to dispose of… No…_ "Naegi. You've seen the incinerator in the garbage room right?" He nods. "How big would you say the entrance was?"

"Um… around…" He makes some rough hand motions to demonstrate the size.

_Not big enough… At least not for the whole thing… But what if…_

"W-What's wrong Nakahara-san?" He asks, concerned. "You actually look disturbed, and that's a rare sight…"

"Nothing." I quickly wave him off. "Just a thought. Not worth dwelling on." I took the key to the Garbage Room regardless, hoping my suspicion eventually proves false.

"Huh? What's this?"

"What? Found something useful at last?"

"Um… here." Naegi shows me a bloodied handkerchief. "This was stuck under the door… wonder what's up with that. And… look… you can see the lines… This was folded together before… Why?"

I take the handkerchief to examine it further. "If you fold it along to the lines… It keeps the blood hidden it seems… Curious…"

"It is very strange…"

I hand it back. "Give it to Kirigiri later, perhaps she can sheds some light on this."

* * *

**Fujisaki's Room**

"Progress?" I ask as I walk into the room of the other victim.

Kirigiri did not reply. She continues methodically searching the room for a minute or two as if I wasn't in the room. The lady really looks into every corner of the room, flipping bed sheets aside, occasionally stopping to consider a theory or two. Being a well-mannered young man, I simply stood and await the little princess to finish her stuffs before deciding I was worth her attention. Eventually she finishes and turns to me. "Fair trade Nakahara. Give me something then I'll do the same. Tell me something helpful." _She said that as if the last few minutes of ignoring me did not happen…_

"Aren't we all in this together?"

"Yes. But you could be the culprit."

"Fair enough." I quickly threw out one I was going to tell her anyway. "Fujisaki's a boy."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Your turn."

"Take a look at the towels inside the bathroom." She says simply, before quickly getting back to her work.

I quickly enters the bathroom and sure enough, there were towels, very, very bloody towels. "Interesting, but I would have discovered this either way Kirigiri."

"That's more than one person's worth of blood Nakahara. Would that be sufficient?"

"Yes, my turn. Yamada has the key to the Garbage Room."

"I see. The culprit has something he needs to dispose of then?"

"I'd assume. No idea why else anyone would go for him. Your turn."

She quickly reaches into her pocket, pulls out a small notebook and tosses it my way. "Fujisaki's diary. Found it in one of his drawers. The last page you will find interesting."

I quickly skim the diary. Basic schoolgirl-like stuffs for the most part, things she did with the people here and how she feels about the events going on. There's a lot of programming gibberish that is frankly beyond my comprehension. There's also a significant amount of other random girlish things, mostly music, poetry and amateur paintings. These aren't my influence, they have been here for quite a while. _If there's a creator responsible for shaping every human being there ever was, he played a cruel joke on Fujisaki Chihiro. Had Fujisaki been a girl, he would have been the ideal maiden for countless young men. Pretty, tamed, well-mannered and a taste for music, poetry and art_. I eventually turn to the final page and find what Kirigiri was talking about.

_'Monokuma is going to reveal my secret to the world tomorrow, but I'm not scared. This is a sign, I must act now. Nakahara spoke true, this façade is pure cowardice. I refuse to go on like this. I must do what I really want to, regardless of what they think of me for it. I will be bold, and tomorrow… I just hope they accept me for who I am. If they won't… Tough! Hehe, I sounded like Nakahara-san then.'_

_She acted on my advice? What did she plan to do exactly? 'I must do what I really want to'. 'I will be bold'. 'I just hope they accept me for who I am'. I don't understand… __and why me of all people? Why not Oogami? Naegi? Asahina? I don't understand… People are so strange… It's somewhat scary…_

"Do you know what he was talking about Nakahara?" Kirigiri breaks me out of my trance.

"Not really no…" I reply half-heartedly, then force myself to focus once more. "It's my turn now. I'm out of ideas, what do you want to know?"

"Just tell me who would be most likely to kill in order to hide yesterday's secret."

"Let's see… Fukawa, Oowada,… possibly Maizono and Togami, but unlikely… and…"

"…and?"

"…and Ludenberg."

"I see. Your co-operation has been genuine. Here…" she tosses a rather sharp object my way.

"Christ! Watch it Kirigiri! This thing is sharp!" I barely catch the thing before it digs a nice deep hole into my fragile skull.

"Suck it up, you're a man."

I sigh. "Contrary to popular belief men's skulls aren't made out of diamonds. I would have bleed easy as an infant kitten had this thing… what the…"

"What is it? Do you know what that is?"

"Yes... a scissor… a very distinctively shaped one too… Be careful with it, this thing pierces walls."

"A scissor that pierces wall?"

"As well as flesh and bones, easily. Leave distinct marks as well, and it's not the only one of its kind. Thank you Kirigiri. I'll take my leave now."

I quickly leave the mildly confused Kirigiri and enter the hallway.

"Do you know where Fukawa is?" I ask Oogami, who was in charge of guarding Fujisaki's room. She nods. "Take me to her. Leave the room unguarded for now. I assure you this is more important."

She stares at me quietly for a while. "You seem to believe what you've said. I'll concur for now." Oogami heads toward Fukawa's room and begin knocking.

"Apprehend her quickly." I say. "You don't have to hurt her. Trust me on this. Regardless of how much a threat you think she is, make absolutely sure she stays neutralized. Do not let her get too far from you."

"You expect me to…" Oogami protests.

"W-What is it?" Fukawa peers out of her half-opened door. "I-I'm useless at these stuffs anyway… so… c-can't I…"

"Get out here Fukawa." I command.

"W-Why…"

"Out!" I shout, intentionally drawing the other students' attention.

She nervously takes small steps toward the hallway. Oogami, finally starting to get suspicious, forcibly close the door behind her. I toss the scissor at her feet.

"H-How did you get this?" She asks a bit too loudly for her sake. _Good._ I say nothing. "Why are you showing me this? I don't know what this is. Get it away from me. Get it away from me!" She was screaming at this point, trying to rush back into her room. A fruitless attempt considering Oogami's now holding her firmly in place.

"The hell are you doing, bullying a girl like that?" Oowada shouts.

"Weak girl?" I ask, pointing at the scissor in front of her. "With twenty-six kills?"

"T-The fuck are you on about?"

"Allow me to bring that down to a level someone like you can understand. Standing in front of you is Genocider Syo."

"What?! You expect us to believe that?" he shouts.

"I-Is that true? Is she really…" Maizono asks.

"That's not possible… I mean… one of us…" Naegi stutters.

"You said you didn't know!" Fukawa shouts.

"I lied." I say. "Would have kept lying had one of your signature weapons not been found in Fujisaki's room."

"Y-You can't prove anything! How can I be in possession of something like that?"

"Take the key from her and search her room. Surely not all of you can be blind enough to ignore her inconsistent responses."

"There's no need for that." Oogami says, pulling out half a dozen or so scissors from Fukawa's sleeves. _How the hell did she manage to stuff those in there?_

"No!" Fukawa screams. "Give that back! It's hers! She'll freak again if she wakes up without them! Give them back!"

"T-That doesn't prove anything!" Ishimaru shouts. "They could just be n-normal scissors… I mean what kind of killer use a scissor as a weapon… A-And how can we know what kind of weapon Genocider Syo uses?"

"You don't. I do though. And a particularly thick canine could have figured out the lady's a terrible liar." I say. "And these are custom-made scissors. They slice through flesh and bones easily. You're welcome to try it on yourself."

"I concur…" Togami speaks up at last. "Fukawa is indeed Genocider Syo. As a Togami, I have access to enough classified information to confirm this. Beside… she told me herself…"

"B-Byakuya-sama!" Fukawa yelps. "Y-You promise…"

"Quiet, murderer."

"What a cunt…" I frown. "You have to admit though, one practically asked for this when deciding to side with Togami Byakuya."

"E-Even you…" Fukawa stutters. "I thought you said…"

"Hmm? Oh that? I lied. Sorry. Anyway did I provide enough evidence to convince you people that we've got a serial killer on our hand?" The others remain silent. The idea of having a serial killer among themselves seems unable to get through their thick skulls. "Yes? Yes. Excellent. Oogami, take her key. I think we can all agree that her privacy is of low priority at this point yes? We have two missing corpses to find and a murderer's room to search." Oogami quietly does what I asked of her, though she doesn't look particularly pleased about it. The others, likewise, raised no objection…

"Fukawa-san… did you really do it? Did you kill Fukawa and Yamada? Did you kill all those people?" Naegi asks, still in disbelief.

"I-I don't know…" Fukawa says, still fruitlessly struggling against Oogami's grip. "It wasn't me! It was her! It was all her!"

"Her? Her who?"

"A murderer's denial no doubt." Ludenberg dismisses. "One way or another they'll find a something to justify their actions. You're just wasting your precious brain cells trying to communicate with such creatures."

"Heheh…" Togami snickers. "I concur. Such people are a waste of space and resources. The sooner their heart ceases to beat the happier we'll all be."

"Can we drop the verbal abuse until we're done investigating?" Kirigiri asks, mildly annoyed.

"Yes. This is all uncalled for." Oogami agrees, pushing the door open. "Whether she's a murderer or not, our action here is making it hard for me to see us claiming the moral high ground in this situation."

"If you say so" Ludenberg shrugs.

"Get in." I tell Fukawa, before barging in myself and scanning the room. It's filled with papers, some on the table, most on the walls. Mostly they're poetry, novels or romantic fictions she wrote. There are also some weirdly amateurish ones among the mess. Fukawa covered a large chunk of the walls with papers, though not enough to cover up any blood that might have been up there. "Christ the place is dusty. This spot is surprisingly clean though…" _Indeed it was. The rest of the room was almost as dusty as the library itself, this spot surprisingly less so._

"I-I cleaned up a bit last night b-but got lazy half way through…" She says. _A boring discovery..._

"There's also a worrying lack of crucified corpses. What's going on here Fukawa?"

"I-I told you… I didn't do it!"

"If I recall correctly last time you said you didn't know. Anything to back that claim up?"

"H-How can I be a serial killer w-when I'm homophobic?"

I take my glove off, grab one of her scissors, cut my hand, and splatter the blood against her face. "Well?"

I expected her feigned shock to come a second or two too late. I expected many things. Some of them come true. This one didn't. Her piercing shriek was immediate and deafening. It was true terror, trapped, confused. Fukawa bends her head back, fruitlessly trying to get away from the blood. It was as if the blood is slowly eating away at her sanity, perhaps it is. Fukawa's scream eventually dies down, leaving an oppressive silence among the students.

"Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup!" The creature in front of me greets cheerfully. "Genocider Syo at thy service! Eh? What's this? Why's the room covered in jam? No way. Was that one book correct after all? Are we going to have a jam apocalypse now? Hold on lemme get me toasters…"

I walk toward her and wipe the blood from her glasses. No one said a single thing.

"Ooooh! A dashing young man! Yes, very nice…"

"Quiet Genocider. Listen carefully, I'm only going to ask this once. You ready? Alright, here we go… **WHAT IN THE FUCK?**"

"GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! A fantastic question! I'd expect no less brainpower from a man wearing a suit vest, a tie and a trilby! Hmm… yes… I see… I see… I seeeee…"

"What? No… that doesn't make any… then… back then… What?"

"Yet another intelligent question! You just won't let up!"

"Quiet!" My hand meets my forehead in an attempt to clear up this headache.

"Yes master!"

"No! Shut up! No master!"

"Yes master!"

"Goddamn it if you won't be quiet I'll rip your bloody jaw out and make you eat your own tongue!"

"A brilliant idea! Though you may want to rip me jaw out AFTER if you're going to make me eat me own tongue at some point."

"I'm out… someone please take over… you! Kirigri! Deal with this while I gather my fallen brain cells!"

Ludenberg just giggles. "It seems we found Nakahara's breaking point."

"Yes yes good for you… Kirigiri, take over before this creature starts talking again."

"Aww, that's it hun? You're just gonna leave me alone with this boring-looking chick? And can anyone tell the giant thing behind me to let go? Your Genocider is actually quite a fragile damsel y'know." Genocider calls out. _Don't respond Shiki don't respond Shiki don't respond Shiki don't respond Shiki don't respond._

"Just to be doubly sure, you admit to being Genocider Syo?" Kirigiri asks, deadpan.

"Qui! Genocider Syo, at your service!"

"The serial killer responsible for the death of twenty-six young men?"

"Ja! Great men they were… There's…"

"You admit to lying before? About not being the serial killer you now claim to be?"

"Aye! Twas a poor lie of an innocent girl… NOT! GAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"What the hell's wrong with this chick?" Oowada mumbles.

"You sure you know what a lie means girl?" Kuwata asks.

"Si! A false statement knowingly given by a naughty girl!" Genocider announces loudly.

"You said you weren't Genocider Syo before but now…" Asahina says.

"I didn't say shit you giant walking pair of tits!"

"W-What!?" _I think she's more concerned about the second half of that statement…_

"Dunno what kinda drug y'all taking but this is the first time we've talked so don't go accusing me of lying now! Genocider Syo is the most honest pretty little girl you'll ever find! Incidentally can this giant thing let go of my arms yet? It's starting to hurt."

"What's this? Short-term memory losses? An amazingly inept liar? A delusional serial killer? What?" Kuwata scratches his head in frustration.

_This sounds familiar._ I finally gather enough of my sanity to speak up. "A fantasy personal perh… HNNG!"

"Huh? What's wrong dude?"

_What's wrong is that there's an incredibly hard high-heel slamming on my toes. _"As I was saying… HNNNNG!" _Fucking shit she's twisting it this time!_

"Dissociative Identity Disorder?" Ludenberg asks casually, almost as if she didn't slam her heavy high-heels on my toes just a few seconds ago. _To be fair that's a much more logical conclusion…_

"This associative identify this order? Wot's that?" Genocider tilts her head. Which might have been cute in a sick way had her tongue not been sticking out as if she had a fat snake living inside her mouth.

"Split personality. Do you consider yourself, the serial killer Genocider Syo, to not be the same person as Fukawa Touko? Do you have different memories? Can both of you exist simultaneously?"

"Ah! Yeah, something along those lines I'm sure. Jesus girl, speak human language so us commoners can understand what you're on about."

"So… this was what Fukawa was talking about…" Naegi points out. "Perhaps… perhaps she didn't mean to do it… perhaps Genocider Syo came out at a bad time and…"

"It matters not." Ludenberg says. "Monokuma won't accept the distinction I'm afraid. Someone will be executed, and she's the one most directly responsible."

"Heh? What're y'all on about?" Genocider asks.

"You'll know when the time comes."

"We're all jumping to conclusion here." Kirigiri points out. "We don't even know Fukawa did it."

"I-Isn't it obvious?" Maizono asks. "That's Genocider Syo the serial killer. The clue we found in Fujisaki's room also points toward her. If not her then who?"

"L-Let's just ask her…" Oowada says. "Oi! Genocider Syo! D-Did you kill her? Did you kill Fujisaki?"

"Heh? Her? Of course not!"

"D-Do you even know who I'm talking about?"

"Bah who cares? I didn't kill her!"

"You expect us to believe the word of a serial killer?" Asahina shouts.

"Oi! No discrimination against serial killers you enormous boobs!"

"Y-You insist that you didn't kill her?" Naegi asks.

"Yup! That wouldn't be natural now would it?"

"What about all those people you killed?"

"That was that and this is this. GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Genocider laughs heartily. It's amazing how she can laugh like that and not bite her tongue off._  
_

"How can you say you didn't kill Fujisaki when you don't even know her?"

"Oh shut yer fucking trap already I know I didn't kill her!"

"Then…"

"That's enough." Kirigiri cuts in. "She clearly denies committing the murder. We're not getting anything else out of her here. Let's leave this for the trial, when we have all the clues we can find. Then we'll know." _Or we'll die._

"Fair enough" Ludenberg says. "We do need to find more clues before the trial starts. I'll take my leave then."

"I'll go. The more furniture, doors, walls or continents between me and this creature the better." I say.

"I've wasted enough time with this demented thing." Togami stands up. "Naegi, come with me, I have something to show you."

"I'll stay here…" Ishimaru says. "A few of us will try and see whether we can get anything else out of her… Keep up the good work soldiers!"

* * *

**Garbage Room**

I'm in front of the Incinerator, double checking my previous suspicion. Everything seems normal with the machine. Although for something that serves as a place to dispose trash, it is oddly spotless. Does Yamada clean this thing every day or something? Surely it would have caught some dirt with the amount of trash thrown in here. Nothing else seems to be out of the ordinary for the garbage room. The door was locked, as it should have been, and the room is appropriately dirty.

"Nakahara" Someone calls out from behind me.

"Ludenberg" I greet "Didn't expect you to get down into the mud with the rest of us peasants m'lady. You need anything?"

"Quit talking like an idiot." She tosses me some bandage.

"Hmm? What's this for?"

"Bandages are for covering wounds Nakahara-kun."

"A startling revelation, Yasuhiro."

She lets out an exasperated sigh. "I swear you do not understand the concept of self-preservation."

"What do you mean?"

"Your hand"

I pull my glove off. _When did I even put the thing on anyway?_ Sure enough my hand is bleeding pretty badly. "Oh yeah… that thing with Fukawa…"

"Appreciated the bravado Nakahara-kun but that was pure stupidity."

I shrug. "Happened on impulse, surprised I went through with it myself. Didn't know you care Yasuhiro"

"You're welcome." She turns around begins to leave.

"W-Wait a second Yasuhiro."

"Fujisaki's laptop is still there, I checked. The culprit either didn't care for that particular hopeless effort or didn't know about it."

"Oh yeah... The laptop... That's good to know."

She turns around, looking mildly confused. "I would have thought that was the first thing you thought of when Fujisaki disappeared."

"A fair assumption. Surprisingly a false one. Anyway, not what I wanted to say. Just... Umm... Thanks... For the bandages... yeah..."

She just nods and leaves._  
_

"Surprisingly considerate of her…" I mumble to myself, wrapping the bandages around my hand. _Christ how did I not notice how much this hurts._

* * *

**Kitchen**

Not that I'm expecting to find any vital clue here but better safe than sorry. Sure enough, the knives are back in place. _Obviously. If Maizono had been sloppy enough to not return them by this point I'd be pretty pissed._

"-Achoo."

"…Maizono…"

"Nakahara-san"

"I see you put the knife back to its rightful place."

"Yeah… First thing I did the morning after the first trial… Are you… suspecting me?"

"Someone else took the spotlight this time unfortunately. Jealous?"

She frowns. "Don't even joke about that…"

"If you say so." I take a quick glance at the clock. "Trial should be starting anytime now… Guess I'm not getting anything else here…"

"T-There is something…"

"Hmm?"

"Promise me you won't get suspicious."

"No. But you're going to tell me anyway. If you don't, we're even more likely to die during the next trial. And if you are somehow directly or indirectly responsible, you're still going to tell me, because otherwise you will even be more suspicious. Now talk."

She bites her nail nervously. "F-Fine… Yesterday... Fujisaki came to my room…"

"Curious… Keep talking."

"Ugh… You always bring your hand to your chin at these times… Your eyes and fingers twitch as well… It makes people nervous you know?"

"Huh… Never noticed that… Keep talking."

"F-Fujisaki came to my room yesterday, asking whether she could come in. I asked why it had to be in the middle of the night. She apologized and said she can't tell me yet. I said no because of what happened last trial, and also because I'm wasn't about to allow anyone in my room after that incentive. She just smiled, saying it's alright, she'll find someone else. We wished each other good night and I closed the door, not thinking much about it… P-Perhaps I'm indirectly responsible for her death as well…"

"Is that so? Confusing. Hard to believe. Likely true. Appreciate your help Maizono, perhaps…"

DING. DONG. DING. DONG. "Ahem. I'm gettin' kinda bored here… so let's get the show on the road shall we? It's the even you've all been waiting for, the Class Trial! Right, please assemble in the usual location! Enter the red door on the first floor of the school zone. Upupu, see you soon!"

* * *

**Courtroom Foyer**

"L-LET ME GO! I SAID I DIDN'T DO IT!" Fukawa screams as Oogami drags her to the Courtroom. I'm forever thankful for whoever's responsible for switching her back to good old Fukawa Touko.

"Those twenty-six dead people aren't helping your case." Togami snides "Ah, my mistake, twenty-eight now…"

"B-Byakuya-sama! Y-You promised!"

"Heh heh…" Ludenberg giggles. "This is amusingly pathetic… or perhaps pathetically amusing?"

"D-Did you really do it?" Oowada asks. "Fujisaki and Yamada… did you kill them?"

"She would not know." Kirigiri says. "Assuming she does have split personalities, Fukawa Touko and Genocider Syo do not share each other's memories."

"Still…" Asahina mumbles. "If she's responsible for their death…"

"That would make the case pretty simple." Ludenberg says.

"Like I said. We aren't sure of anything yet." Kirigiri points out. "We musn't jump to conclusion."

"Say what you will, this trial will be quick and easy." Togami dismisses.

Fujisaki… A gentle, naive fool, never harmed a soul. A weak person too, at least for most of his life, but he was taking steps, which is more than you can say about most people, probably even me. No offense to Yamada, but he was not known to me. Not saying me and Fujisaki were close or anything… but… this one is personal. It's amazing how affected you get when you know the victim even slightly... I hope Genocider isn't responsible for this, there's no satisfaction to be gained from killing mad creatures. If there was a sane human being responsible for all this though… if that's the case, let's hope Monokuma has a fitting execution in mind… I want the killer hurt. I want him bleeding and crying. I want to skin his face and hang him on the staircase. Christ I seriously have issues...

"Let's see…" Monokuma appears on a nearby monitor. "Ten… Eleven… Twelve. Yup, That's all of you. The elevator's unlocked now. Hurry up and head on down to the courtroom!"

"Here we go again..." Naegi sighs.

"We're going to have to say that a few more times at this rate." I say.

"Unless the next villain picks you." Ludenberg giggles.

"A fair point."

We step into the elevator, and it moves.

Twelve students descended, and either one of us goes free, or eleven of us will ascent again, leaving another corpse down there. Yamada and Fujisaki lay dead somewhere in this facility and one of you is guilty. This one is different. This one is personal. I won't let this slide. Someone will be punished for this, and if that cannot be achieved, perhaps we would deserve death. But then again, give us a week or two and we'll end up deserving a lot more...

"You're cruel… You're all cruel…" Fukawa mumbles. She has finally stopped struggling against Oogami's grip, her head hanging down, her eyes filled with resentment. "You all know it wasn't my fault… that I had no control over her… I didn't kill Fujisaki or Yamada or any of Genocider Syo's victims… Yet you would all offer me up to his Sacrificial Altar… to let my blood sustain your distorted lives for a few more days… Well fine, that's how it works after all… What's one more body among the foundation to a hopeful future? DO IT! BUT KNOW THAT YOU DRAGGED ME KICKING AND SCREAMING TO THE EXECUTION ROOM! KNOW THAT I AM AS GUILTY AS ANY OF YOU HERE RIGHT NOW! KNOW THAT MY BLOOD WILL FOREVER TAINTS WHATEVER REMAINS OF YOUR LIVES HERE! REMEMBER THIS WHEN YOUR TURN COMES, WHEN IT'S YOUR BODY THEY OFFER, WHEN YOU LIE DOWN THERE, CRYING AND BLEEDING, REMEMBER MY DESPAIR AND KNOW THAT YOU BROUGHT IT ABOUT WITH YOUR OWN HANDS!"

* * *

So there you have it, the second murder(s). I swear every time someone says "A is my favorite, I hope you don't kill him/her" that person is the same person I was planning to kill off next. Sorry, Chihiro's fans, also Mukuro's fans since I don't think I apologized for that one. By this point I have the victims/villains of the remaining trials planned (though not in great details) so I'm sorry if your favorite character falls into that category. Yeah... Just saying I'm not doing it on purpose.  
Next chapter will be the trial obviously, and in case that ending didn't make it clear enough, this starts a downward spiral that may or may not have a bottom. Enjoy~.  
So yes, hope you liked this one. I honestly don't know how this chapter turned out overall, some part I had difficulty putting in elegantly while others just flow naturally and I quite liked the results of those. Please let me know how I'm doing by leaving reviews, I'd really appreciate it.


	18. Chapter 15

Morli: I assumed the stuffs that go into the incinerator end up somewhere else (where Naegi went when after his execution), was I wrong? I've never seen the thing in real life so I very well might be. If there were little traces the killer could get rid of them easily due to having full access to the Garbage room (unlike Kuwata, in the canon story). Take a look at the trial and tell me whether it makes sense to you in the end.  
Kamilia07329: 3rd trial will include a high amount of cotton candies, ponies and ice cream. Also all the dead students so far turn out to be alive after all, and were in fact preparing a surprise party for the class. Monokuma will then give each of them a pat on the back and a million dollars and send them on their way. And they'll ride into the rainbow on unicorns conjured purely out of the sheer power of friendship. Credit rolls and it'll play the song… I don't know… "Sunshine lollipops and rainbows" or something… Yup that's how this will all end, spoiler alert.  
Alucards-Woman: Thanks a bunch :)! Syo was indeed really fun to write. I actually dreaded writing her for a while but once she's there it was surprisingly easy. I didn't know Fujisaki had such luck… Ah well. Nice people do tend to die in these things.  
Jin-Rimu: Thanks! I haven't decided on the guard duty thing yet though. Maybe if it feels appropriate. At this point Shiki considers saving everyone a lost cause anyway and will only focus on protecting the ones who are closer to him. Maybe a sleepover or something.  
TheRoseShadow21: I do remember Kirigiri giving that 'you're a man so…' to Naegi more than once so yeah (might be wrong). Yours are probably more likely though. The other point will be cleared up during the trial. Thanks for the review!  
Sxilenced: Thanks! I do try to branch away from the canon story because there's little point in repeating a vastly better presented story with my amateur skill so I try to compensate my shortcomings with new ideas. I'm glad to see Genocider was as fun for you to read as it was for me to write :). Shiki's past will indeed be a major focus near the end of the story and I can't wait to start writing that part. I'll have to think about Celes some more. Her murder is one of the more elaborately planned one so doing that again will be really hard. That said I haven't decided whether she'll kill, try to kill or get killed yet so that wasn't a spoiler. P.S - New World Order is definitely one of the best ones in the game, though my favorite would have to be 'Mr. Monokuma's Extracurricular Lesson' :D.  
Sachin: I'd pay all my non-vital organs as well as a few of the vital ones to see my OC integrated into the DR's world. And while I'm fantasizing I'd also like Dangan Ronpa 3. Thanks for the review!  
AnimesWorld: I thought I said a bigger role, not a major one, which is still kinda misleading so sorry. I thought he had more screen time than most, more than in the canon story if I remember correctly but yeah I didn't use him as much as I intended. Shiki does not make promises friend ;). Naegi should have more opportunity to display his character as the situation grows worse. Shiki and him are kinda opposite now that I think about it, one is idealistic to a fault, the other's philosophy is pretty much 'whatever works works'. Yeah Nano's appearance fits (just quickly googled him), Shiki has few distinct appearance traits so anything goes really. That said Shiki does have pale blue eyes, although you can imagine him wearing contact lenses. That's something he would do. Nice songs :). Also for future references tomboys ARE girls (I know, English's weird), just pointing that out.  
Oh my, longest chapter again. Also last chapter has the most reviews once more, thanks a lot guys!  
Had difficulty with this trial, that should teach me to never plan these things loosely again, though I have no idea how it turned out in the end. Hope you enjoy it. Please leave feedback.

* * *

**Chapter 15**

"Whaddya think of the new décor? Pretty exciting, huh? Makes it feel like a totally different room right!?" Monokuma greets as the elevator arrives.

"Skip the pleasantries. Just hurry up and get this started." Togami says.

"Oooh, you've got spunk! I like that. A'ight, let's get this party started!"

We take our seat, and the curtain rises. The puppeteer watches as the puppets dance. Someone will be killed today, and the rest of us will go on as before. Or perhaps someone will go free today, and the rest of us will go on to wherever dead people go. Whatever the case, let the witch-hunt begins. Eleven lives to preserve. Two victims to avenge. A murderer to find.

"Let's start off with a simple explanation! You guys' votes determine the trial's outcome. Finger the true villain, and only the villain is punished. But make the wrong accusation and everyone else gets punished, leaving your deceiver to graduate, free and clear! Let's see… first off on the agenda… How 'bout we start things off with the corpses?"

"He said the corpses couldn't be found… Why are we even wasting our time with this?" Oowada asks.

"We know nothing about the fate of Fujisaki's and Yamada's bodies." Oogami says. "Perhaps it's safe to assume we won't be getting anything there?"

"We don't even know where they are!" Asahina says. "How are we supposed to figure out anything?"

"We do know something…" Kirigiri points out.

"Huh?"

"We do know they're somewhere where they can't be found. Monokuma himself made that very clear."

"And a ton help that is…" Togami chides. "How are we supposed to figure out anything about them if their corpses are out of reach? We can understand nothing if they're now somewhere we don't have access to."

"But they're not."

"She's right." Naegi points out. "Monokuma said it himself. None of us has gone anywhere the rest of us currently don't have access to."

"But we've searched every corner!" Asahina shouts in frustration. "They're nowhere to be found!"

"Perhaps it's somewhere we have access to… but cannot go ourselves?" Ludenberg says.

"Yes…" Kirigiri agrees. "And the answer may lie in the choice of victim…"

"Huh? Someone killed Fujisaki to hide the corpse?" Oowada asks. "How does that make any sense?"

"Not Fujisaki. Yamada"

"What do you mean?" Togami asks. "What could that fatso have had that the rest of us didn't"

"Do you mean… the key to the garbage room?" Naegi says.

"I do." Kirigiri answers.

"W-We've definitely searched there!" Asahina shouts. "We've searched that place multiple times! There's nothing!"

"That's because there corpse isn't in there." I say.

"Well where could it be then?

"Wherever incinerator takes the trash"

"W-What?" The blood drains from her face within seconds. "T-The villain threw the corpses down the incinerator!?"

"That would be my theory."

"Nonsense!" Ishimaru shouts. "The entrance is too small! Even Fujisaki wouldn't fit."

"Of course the whole body wouldn't fit." I say.

"What do you mean?"

"Need I spell it out for you?" I take their silence as a yes. "The killer butchered the corpses and threw the pieces down the incinerator. Head, limps, torso. Any ashes or whatever came out can simply be dumped down a toilet or something."

"Yes… It could be done…" Ludenberg says.

"B-Butchered…" Oowada mumbles.

"T-To cut her into small pieces of meat… and s-simply toss them in like that?" Maizono asks, visibly frightened.

"THAT'S DISGUSTING!" Asahina looks like she's about to vomit.

"And how do you suggest he butchered the bodies?" Togami asks. "None of the kitchen knives were taken this time."

"Genocider's scissors." I answer. "Like I said, they easily slice through flesh and bones. They pierce through walls even. That's how Genocider crucifies her victims. Slicing off parts of a body would be simple."

"And the blood? Cutting up a body like that would leave a big mess."

"We found towels covered in blood. Kirigiri said it contained more blood than there could have been in one body. This proves two things. One, both Yamada and Fujisaki were thrown down the incinerator. Two, they were indeed butchered. There is no way a simple murder attempt can produce that much blood, even when there are two victims, even with Genocider's bombastic methods. No, someone cut them up into pieces, and cleaned up the mess with the towels."

"And why would she need to do such a thing?" Kirigiri asks.

"Because the corpses will easily identify the killer." Togami answers. "Her scissors leave very distinct, recognizable marks. With your ability to methodically examine every corner of a body, you would have easily spotted the oddly shaped cuts, and I would have recognized the weapon."

"Yes." I continue. "And cutting off specific parts would have made it even more suspicious if people knew about the whole crucifying thing, so she opted to dispose of the entire body. Moreover, the incinerator was spotless despite being where we dump the trash. The rest of the room was nowhere as clean. The only explanation is it caught blood while the killer was throwing the body down, so the incinerator specifically had to be cleaned."

"That does seem logical." Ludenberg assesses.

Fukawa stays silent throughout the whole thing. I don't think she was even listening. She looks defeated.

"Heh. I think this case is over." Togami concludes. "How boring. Monokuma…"

"Welp. That's that then…" Monokuma claps his tiny hands.

"Wait!" Naegi shouts.

"What?"

"Something doesn't make sense…"

"Do tell." Ludenberg says.

"First off, Genocider's method is completely different."

"Hmm… You mean the crucifying part?" I ask.

"Yes. According to the files Togami showed me..." _The files Togami showed me huh..._ "...she crucifies all her victims. This is true for every single kills thus far. All twenty-six. Every single one was crucified with her scissors, not only that…"

"The writing in blood…" Maizono points out.

"Yes. Again, true for every single victim. Don't you think it was strange that neither of these things were presented in either Fujisaki's or Yamada's death?"

"That's stupid." Togami chides. "Even that demented creature wants to live. She changed her method this time so she can escape and kill more people. The blood could have been cleaned with the towels."

"But that's the thing! She shouldn't have known about any of this! Fukawa has split personalities. There's no reason for Genocider to hide her deeds if she doesn't even know about the trial!"

"Fukawa couldn't have done it either." Kirigiri says. "Not with her extreme case of hemophobia."

"It is true that crucifying someone would leave holes on the walls and we didn't spot any of those…" I say.

"S-So I didn't do it then?" Fukawa asks, not daring to feel relieved yet.

"Make up your damn mind woman. But I suppose that's what we'll have to go with for now…"

"But then how did the scissor find its way into Fujisaki's room?" Asahina asks.

"Perhaps someone tried to frame Genocider…" Togami starts. "Let's trace our steps back to the beginning. How did we start suspecting her in the first place?"

"Nakahara told me to apprehend her." Oogami points out.

That earned me a long hard stare from the others. _Not this shit again…_ "Kirigiri gave it to me."

"I found it in Fujisaki's drawer." she says, which does nothing to dispel the others' suspicion.

"And we're supposed to believe that?" Togami asks.

"Yes."

"How do you suggest Fujisaki got her hand on Genocider Syo's scissors?"

"Someone put it there."

"P-Perhaps she did!" Fukawa says. "F-Fujisaki was in my room last night… S-She could have taken it..."

"Why did this not come up sooner?" I ask. "You're even better than Maizono at digging your own grave with your tongue aren't you."

"I-I was certain you all would let me be executed anyway… s-so…"

"What did Fujisaki want?" Kirigiri asks, already impatient.

"Uh… Nothing really… She just hanged around… asked me to teach her poetry and stuffs… and just left after that…"

"Poetry? That does seem to be one of her interests if the diary is any indication."

"She stole the scissor from you then?" I ask.

"I-I guess…" Fukawa says.

"Why would she want something like that?"

"I don't know…"

"There's only one reason why anyone would want Genocider's scissors…" Togami says.

"What do you mean?" Oowada asks.

"Fujisaki tried to frame Genocider after killing someone is what Togami's saying." Ludenberg answers.

"Nonsense!" Ishimaru shouts. "Fujisaki would never do something like that!"

"I'll have to agree…" I say. "Beside, how would she even know about Genocider's scissors? Such information isn't available to the public."

"She's the Super High-School Level Programmer." Togami says. "No doubt she attempted to hack into the Togami's database before. There's a wealth of valuable information there, and Genocider's cases were one of the easier one to get into. And even if she didn't there are leaked footage on the internet, something she deals with on a daily basis I might add. As soon as she recognized the scissors, she saw the opportunity to cover up whatever secret Monokuma was about to spread."

_Togami knew about Genocider Syo's true identity._

"That does match up with what her last diary page says." Kirigiri says. "She was indeed preparing for something big… The towels were also found in her room."

_Fujisaki's diary..._

"That doesn't prove anything!" Asahina shouts. "Fujisaki couldn't have done it and we all know that! The girl wouldn't hurt a fly to save her life!"

"You speak of her as if you're her mother." Togami snickers. "Don't presume you know anything about Fujisaki. You've met her no more than a few days ago."

"E-Even so…"

"She did ask to enter my room." Maizono speaks up.

"Huh? Why?" Kuwata asks.

"She said she just wanted to hang out a bit… but…"

"You're wondering whether she was going to murder you then yes?" Ludenberg asks.

"S-She did look pretty nervous…"

"Even you Maizono?" Asahina asks.

"You have to admit, the evidences aren't in her favor." Ludenberg says.

"But it's Fujisaki…"

"M-Maybe Togami had a point… we've known her for less than a week…" Oowada mumbles.

"You're all ignoring one vital detail." Kirigiri points out.

"Fujisaki's death you mean?" I ask.

"Simple." Togami says. "Fukawa found out about Fujisaki's plan. Killed her using Genocider's scissors. Then killed Yamada in order to properly dispose of the corpses."

"W-What?" Fukawa shrieks. _Fukawa's the villain once more?  
_

"We've always had the correct villain. Just the wrong story." _The correct villain..._

"Y-You're all going to let me die anyway? A-After getting my hope up like that?"

"Didn't' we agree that Fukawa didn't kill Fujisaki?" Oogami asks. "Didn't the fact that the corpses weren't crucify prove her innocence?"

"We had assumed Fujisaki's murder was an accident." Togami says. "What if it wasn't? It is possible that they could have communicated through written notes... Say… if it wasn't an accident… If Fukawa had actually planned Fujisaki's death, she could have left a note explaining the whole thing to Genocider. In such scenario Genocider Syo would have cause to change her usual methods and hide the corpses."

"We can't be sure of any of this!" Naegi says. "These are all simple deductions…"

"Pretty logical deduction." Ludenberg points out.

"S-Still… There are no evidences…"

"Well why don't we ask the culprit herself?" Togami says.

"Huh? I-I didn't do it!" Fukawa shouts. "You're asking me to switch again?"

"DO IT!"

"Genocider Syo, here to serve aaaaaall your kinky needs!" _That didn't take long..._

"I'm in the mood for some BDSM role-play, please." Ludenberg says.

"Right here in the courtroom?" I ask. "That… does have a certain exhibitionist appeal…"

"Oi! I don't do girls!" Genocider shouts.

"Ah… You **haven't** done girls." Ludenberg grins. "That can be fixed."

"A delicious proposition… IF ALL MEN WERE DEAD!"

"That can be arranged."

"SHUT UP!" Togami shouts.

"Okay!" Genocider eagerly obeys.

"Did you seriously have that conversation in the middle of a class trial?" Kuwata asks.

"Evidently" Oogami sighs.

"You just go running your mouth whenever you want don't you?" Asahina frowns. "And you too Celes, encouraging her like that…"

"Have to find my entertainment where I can." Ludenberg smiles.

"ENOUGH!" Togami shouts again. "This is a waste of time. I didn't call her out for this."

"Seriously are you just going to ask her whether she killed Yamada or not?" Asahina asks.

"Heh? Yamada who?" Genocider says.

"Yamada the fat otaku with a face that looks like a seal." I answer. "He also constantly smells faintly of sweats and wank."

"Ah! That Yamada! Yeah, totes! One of my more unusual men I must say." That earned her a silent stare from the students.

"S-Seriously?" Kuwata asks.

"Yup! Did him and off I go! Didn't last long though. Little miss Touko came back before I can find another knight in shining armor."

"W-Why?" Naegi asks.

"Honestly I'm as surprised as the rest of you. When the missus left a note telling me to off him I was all like 'fuck off, how low do you think my standards are?' But after we talked for a while, I was enlightened… I discovered a new kink… When I got close to him… His disgusting smell… His pathetic face… His constant drooling… His disgraceful tastes… Everything was just so… perfectly… revolting! I felt it right then… 'I MUST HAVE HIM!' I thought 'I MUST HAVE HIM NOW!' And so I did~. Curtains close, credits roll, and they lived happily ever after. Well, one of them lived happily ever after. The other's just happily ever after... something... GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"It seems we've gone full circle…" Kirigiri sighs.

"But how does Genocider kill Yamada when it was Fukawa who planned it?" Ishimaru asks. "She can't switch personality at will... can she?"

"Remember the incident in her room?" I ask. "She switches when she sees blood."

"Uh… yeah that's a fair deduction I think…"

"Naegi, do you remember that thing we found in Yamada's room?"

"The handkerchief?" He asks.

"Indeed. One side was smeared with blood and it was folded in. Using that she can carry blood around and switches personality at will." _Though I have no idea how she intends to switch back…_

"S-She really did it after all…" Asahina says.

"What was all this even for then?" Oowada grumbles in frustration. "Yamada and Fujisaki are still dead and Fukawa's still going to die… We're back to where we started!"

_Back to where we started? Back... to... I see... The diary... The walls... The promise... Yes, the pieces fit. I think I know what happened... I'll hold my tongue. One way or another we'll get out of here alive. I need not say anything else._

"Whatever the case, we have a villain. Get it over with Monokuma." Togami says.

"Hmm? Well alright then…" Monokuma reaches out for his hammer.

"No!" Naegi shout. "Something's still off…"

"Oh come on!"

"But think about it. Genocider couldn't have gotten rid of the corpses since she doesn't care about being found out. I mean she confessed as soon as we asked. Fukawa has a severe case of hemophobia so she couldn't have moved the bodies either. How did the corpses disappear? More importantly… I'm still not convinced Fujisaki was planning a murder."

"Does it even matter?" Togami asks. "The villain confessed killing Yamada. That's all we need since there are only two corpses. Start the execution and get it all over with already."

"It is a bit odd…" Kirigiri says. "Genocider Syo confessed to killing Yamada but not Fujisaki. Could there be another villain or are we missing something?"

"Like I said, two corpses, Genocider is responsible for at least one of them. It doesn't matter."

"No. That is unacceptable. I will get to the bottom of this right here."

Togami does not take kindly to this. "And who are you to decide that?"

"I also think we should do this right now…" Naegi chimes in. "Things just seem off and if we're going to solve it anywhere it might well be here…"

Most of the others seem to agree so I offer my approval in turn. _Really though, like he said, it doesn't matter. In fact it would even have been more beneficial to end it right now..._

"Heh. Waste your time if you really must." Togami says. "We'll see where that goes."

"So, let's start from the top. According to you, Fujisaki visits Fukawa during the night, stole her scissors…"

"Whaaat!?" Genocider shrieks, fumbling with her sleeves and skirts, looking for her weapons. "Where the fuck are my darlings? Only half of them are here!"

"As I was saying… Fujisaki stole the scissors…"

"Who's this Fujisaki and where…"

"SHUT UP!" Togami shouts.

"Okay~"

Kirigiri sighs. "As I was saying… Fujisaki stole the scissors, planning to kill someone with it and frame Fukawa. Fukawa found out, killed Fujisaki using her Genocider Syo personality, then proceed to kill Yamada so she can dispose of the corpse. Genocider, having received written notes by Fukawa, decided to change her methods and dispose of the corpses. Is that the gist of it Togami?"

"I decided what now?" Genocider asks.

"Need I repeat myself yet again?" Togami ignores her.

"Oi I'm a bit confused here!" Genocider shouts.

"I asked because there are too many inconsistencies." Kirigiri says.

"Seriously this is just rude..." Genocider mumbles. "Ruder than that one dude who..."

"Explain yourself." Togami says.

"Oh fuck this shit..." Genocider finally gives up.

"Firstly, Genocider herself confessed to killing Yamada, but not Fujisaki…" Kirigiri continues.

"That's because I didn't you dimwits!" Genocider shouts. "Whoever the hell this Fujisaki chick is…"

"Ah… I see… That explains..."

"What explains?" Oowada asks.

"Later. Secondly, if Fukawa really did kill Fujisaki to cover up her Genocider's personality, why did she leave the scissor behind?"

"She could have missed it…" Asahina says.

"Doubtful. It was on the table when I found it, as if it wished to be found. Someone left the scissor there on purpose."

"B-But who?"

"It could not have been the murderer. If the murderer had been Fukawa, it would be self-explanatory. If the murderer had been someone else, he would have no reason to dispose of the corpse."

"A third-party then?" Ludenberg asks. "Someone unrelated to the crime itself but wished to cover up the murder for whatever reason?"

"Why the hell would you?" Oowada shouts. "That would get us all killed, and that includes the asshole who tampered with the scene!"

"Before we worry about that, we need to find the real story here." Kirigiri says. "And I believe I know who she is. Nakahara, tell them Fujisaki's secret."

_Oh come on.._._ Did she notice my silence?_ "Is this necessary?"

"Yes."

"Ugh… fine… Well, see… Fujisaki Chihiro's a boy…"

"That's not funny Nakahara!"

"Stop being stupid!"

"There's no way Chihiro could be a girl!"

"R-Really!?"

"Oh wow…"

"Is that so…"

"You dimwits can't tell a cock from a cunt or something?"

_And so on and so forth._ "There you go Kirigiri."

"Put more effort into it." She insists. "You know where I'm going with this and you've been intentionally silent throughout most of the trial. This has gone on for enough don't you think?"

_Yup, she noticed alright._ "If you insist. Genocider, did you recently kill a cross-dresser right in your room?"

I can almost see light bulb lighting up on top of her head. "Ah yeah! That's what you lots were on about! Yup, did him as well! Quite an experience that was, he gives the best yelps. Like a puppy with its tail nailed to a moving car. Or maybe a..." _That's enough of that__._

"What? But didn't you deny killing Fujisaki before?" Ishimaru asks.

"Genocider did not know who Fujisaki is." I say. "But you all referred to him as a girl before, so Genocider naturally denied it without needing to know."

"B-But if none of us knew… How could she have?"

_Oh dear, here we go…_ "Um… I think… it was kinda my fault…"

"Why did this not come up sooner?" Togami asks.

"I was hoping we would just settle for executing Fukawa without this getting out. I don't give out other people's secrets like free candies you know?" _At least not to the brainless lots._

"Go on." Kirigiri says. "How were you responsible?"

"I… indirectly AND unknowingly I swear so put your pitchforks and torches away… influenced her decision to visit Fukawa in the night."

"Huh? How?" Asahina asks.

"C-Could that be the reason for her visit yesterday?" Maizono asks.

"Heh… sharp…" I say. "Yes, yes it was, and had you let him in he would not have been killed Maizono." _I'm definitely not blaming her, that would be stupid, but I need to redirect the blame away from me for a bit. It's getting suffocating being me here._ "Remember his conversation in the cafeteria? He was trying to become stronger, as befitting a boy. Fujisaki Chihiro had insecurities about his gender all his life, so he opted to be a girl instead. I saw this situation as unacceptable for a fr… an acquaintance, so I encourage him to rebel, to accept both his gender AND his personality. I encouraged him to do as she pleases instead of what his gender is supposed to do. Heh heh… supposed to… what a phrase… Anyway, with Monokuma threatening to reveal his secret within a day, he decided to get rebellious. To reveal his gender to someone, and at the same time doing what he really wants."

"Then… was her... his... visit to me… a rebellious statement about his personality and gender?" Maizono asks.

"Likely. Fujisaki has shown interest in music in his diary. But you refused, understandably, so he went for his other feminine interest, poetry." I gaze in Genocider's direction.

"Heh? Poetry? Me? Naaaaah…" She says. "That's the missus's business."

"There you have it. I assumed they hanged out for a while until Fujisaki felt it was enough to reveal her reason for being there. This seems to have turned Fukawa on enough that she immediately nailed Fujisaki to the wall."

"Nail her to the wall? Wouldn't that leave marks?" Naegi asks.

"It did, she covered it up with papers. You can see some spots on her walls were cleaner than others, despite her room being consistently dusty. She said she didn't finish cleaning up her room, but I suspect she simply moved the papers already on her walls to cover up the holes left by the scissors. The original locations of such papers are the clean spots."

"And how would you explain the scissor and the bloody towels in Fujisaki's room?" Togami asks.

"Whoever disposed of the corpses also had the key to Fujisaki's room."

"And who would that be?"

_If you really want me to say it... _"You"

"Is that so?"

"Yes. Fukawa saw what Genocider did to Fujisaki, so she came crying to you, the only person who knew her secret, and the only person she foolishly trusts. Remeber what she said when we apprehended her: 'But you promised...'. Of course, you accepted. An opportunity this was. You told her you were going to help her, cover up her crime, frame someone else. But clearly you didn't. A Togami loves only two things: His last name and himself. You weren't going to sacrifice jack to save her. You made a fool out of us all. You orchestrated this whole thing."

"Heh… Impressive."

"You admit it then?" Oogami asks. "You admit that you butchered their corpses and burned them to crisps just to hide someone else's crime?"

"Evidently."

"What?" Oowada shouts. "Why the hell would you?"

"Good question. Perhaps those of you with working brains can tell me that much."

"It wasn't out of affection for Fukawa that's for sure." I say. "He made it specifically so that no matter which story we came up with, the villain would always be Genocider Syo."

"But our first story was always correct!" Naegi says. "And he agreed with us back then!"

"Yes he did." Ludenberg says. "Loudly, and in front of everyone, knowing that story would be debunked soon with the information he has given you."

"Indeed." I continue. "We were never in any danger from the start. We were just dancing on his strings. He wanted to see whether we would get the correct story, to see which one of us would be dangerous when it's his turn to kill. That's why you all should have executed Fukawa then and there. Finding out the truth would be serving his plan."

"Indeed. I needed to measure how much threat each of you posed. And I think I got exactly what I wanted. Kirigiri, Naegi, Nakahara. You performed well, and therefore have made yourself a potential target for any future villain among us. And when they're done, it will be my turn."

"Thanks a lot Kirigiri." I grumble. "I was silent for a reason you know."

"It was important to spread it out a bit." She says simply.

"Can't say I wouldn't do differently in your shoes."

"That's why you defied their corpses?" Oogami asks Togami, looking like she's two seconds away from ripping out his intestine and use them as jump ropes.

"Don't make me repeat myself, brute." Togami dismisses. "Corpses feel nothing. Although… that only applied to one of them."

That caught my attention. "Explain yourself Togami."

"Genocider only kills about half her victim. The other half she crucifies and they eventually bleed out. Fujisaki was conscious as I dragged him to the Garbage Room. He said nothing, surprisingly. I thought he would plead for help or ask me to end it for him. But he just looked lost, confused. Hah! The weakling was still alive by the time I finished stuffing bits of Yamada in the incinerator. I was determined to not be the villain for this class trial, that my time has not come yet, that when I go free it will be due to a work of my own, not a deranged killer's accidental kill. So I waited for him to bleed out, and proceeded to deal with his corpse. It took an hour or two."

_Is that so?_

"You cold-hearted bastard…" Asahina glares at him.

_This wasn't simple efficiency…_

"This asshat needs to have his head on a pike!" Kutawa shouts.

_He taunts us with his sadism…_

"You… disgust me…" Maizono whispers.

_…I think it's time to act…_

"Your opinion matters little." Togami says. "You won't live long anyway. As I've said I'll be the only one leaving this place alive."

_Yes… It's time to act… Little cub, you've gone on prancing enough, baring your fangs for all to see… It's time to reap what you've sown… Now I'll act. Yes..._

"Is this all true… Byakuya-sama?" Fukawa asks.

"When did you switch back?" I ask.

"Is it?" She ignores me completely.

"Get it through your thick skull already." Togami says. "You never meant anything. Fukawa, Genocider, Fujisaki, Yamada, all of you are pawns in the game. Why should I help any of you? And indeed, why should I help you? You're as pathetic as an earthworm with half the amount of self-respect."

Fukawa's look was one of resignation, of defeat, of despair. "I suppose… this was always how it was going to end..."

"Obviously. Monokuma get it over with."

"Roger!" Monokuma answers cheerfully. "It's the moment you guys have all been waiting for: Ballot Time! Cast your vote using the switch in front of you!"

Fukawa Touko, I voted. Perhaps she was right. Perhaps it wasn't her fault that Fujisaki and Yamada died. But it mattered not. There are eleven of us, and one of her. We all know how this will end.

"Well well! You guys were right again! The villain responsible for Fujisaki Chihiro and Yamada Hifumi's death… is Fukawa Touko! Aka Genocider Syo. Aka looney bin nerd girl. Aka Togami's little three legged puppy with a nail stuck in its skull."

"S-Should we really do this?" Naegi asks. "It was Genocider Syo, not Fujisaki Touko who killed those two. Voting for her… this is the same as murder…"

"Not voting for her would be the same as suicide, as well as murdering those who did vote for her." I answer. "Beside, she asked Togami to cover her crime up, which is the same as attempting to kill the rest of us for survival."

"I-I have nothing to say…" Fujisaki mumbles. "Just get it over with…"

"Well alright…" Monokuma says. "I was going to give a long speech about…"

"Shut up!" Kuwata shouts. "J-Just do it! I don't know anymore! Just do it!"

"Haiz… You need to quell such violent tendencies Kuwata-san, it's not healthy. Anyway, yes, the punishment. Little children, please sit down, I'll tell you all a story. It's punishment time!"

Fukawa was dragged onto her own execution chamber abruptly, in chains, just like what happened to Enoshima. The nearby monitor shows us in in vivid details what's going on. Fukawa appears to be in a dimly lit room, too scared to move.

**This is the story of a girl named Touko.** The footage narrates. Judging by Fukawa's reaction, she hears it too. **Touko is a simple, boring girl. She had no beauty, no wits, no feminine traits. No boy would even glance at her if it wasn't for her stench. So she dreamt. She wrote stories, poems, prose, about a better girl living a better life, a happy life. In her stories she always had someone. And so, Touko, was happy…**

"Let me out!" Fukawa shouts, clearly frightened now. "Shut up! I don't want to be here! Let me out!"

"What's the point of all this?" Kuwata asks furiously. "Just get it over with!"

**And then, one day… she met him.** The room lit up a bit, showing a silhouette. _What the… it looked like…_

"BYAKUYA-SAMA!" Fukawa shrieks. "H-How…"

I turn to Togami. There he stands, looking mildly interested at the screen. _The person in there isn't Togami. _The silhouette did not move. He's simply there, like a statue, but somehow I know that's a person without a doubt. _Someone else is here… Someone from the outside perhaps?_

**Despite having written countless stories, each of them containing the most perfect lover imaginable, Touko could never have known such a beautiful man could exist. He was everything she could ever want. Not even in her fantasies were she happier than she is now, simply looking at him. But she wanted more… so she followed… and followed… and followed. She would die for him. She would gladly move on to the next world with him. If only he had allowed her…**

**"**Byakuya-sama!" Fukawa shrieks. "Y-You came for me! I'm here!"

"Pathetic…" Togami snorts.

"That person's alive…" Kirigiri whispers.

"What? How?" Oowada shouts. "S-Someone from the outside is here? Why is he in Fukawa's execution chamber?"

"He's drugged. Look at the way his body twitches. Why is he here?" Kirigiri says to herself.

**But Touko knew… They lived in different worlds… Her ideal man was different. He was too perfect. While Touko's… well… Touko's Touko. So, her man left… he went through the door… on the right, where decent people go, to a world befitting someone like him.**

The room lit up further, showing two sets of door. The man entered the one on the right. There's something off-putting about his movement… Kirigiri's right, he's definitely drugged. Right now he's simply obeying the commands. The door closes behind him.

"BYAKUYA-SAMA!" Fukawa screams. "W-Wait for me… I-I'll come with you… wherever you go…"

"That wasn't Byakuya..." Kirigiri says. "Both his hair and eye colors were slightly off... Monokuma must have gotten someone else as substitute."

"Goes to show how resourceful our captor is." Ludenberg says. "Goes to show how delusional Fukawa has become."

**Touko knew how this will end, for there can only be one ending. She would accept reality. She would understand that no good thing can ever occur to her outside her stories. She would take the door on the left, never forgetting that man, until the day she stands on top of her chair, alone in her room, with a rope around her neck, ready to kick back... With that in mind, Touko accepted her fate, and entered the door on the left. **

"I-Is this how this all ends?" Fukawa asks herself. At this point she's unstable enough to listen to the story seriously. "Am I going to accept all this... T-Then die, in my room, a rope around my neck, alone?"

**Yes. Touko knew. There is only one way this can end.**

"…n-no… no… no… no no no no no no NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO **NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NOOO!**" Fukawa screams. "I WON'T ACCEPT THIS! I'VE HAD ENOUGH! I DON'T WANT THIS! YOU'RE TELLING ME I'LL REMAIN THIS WAY, UNCHANGING, UNTIL THE DAY I TAKE MY OWN LIFE? NO! THAT ISN'T WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN! I'M CHANGING THE STORY, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!" and with that, she slams the door on the right open, and runs, tears in her eyes.

**This isn't how the story goes, and Fukawa knew it.**

**"**No! The story be damned!"

**Perhaps… Perhaps she's strong enough after all…**

"Yes… If I only have the courage to…"

**Perhaps she can change her fate…**

"I will…"

**Perhaps for once, she'll write her own story, rather than her fantasies…**

"Yes…"

**Perhaps all her dreams don't have to be dreams…**

"B-Byakuya-sama…"

**And with that… she arrived… just where she wanted… the future she asked for…**

This time, Fukawa says nothing. She goes to her knees, gazing at what she seeks. In front of her… the boy who was meant to be Togami… was crucified, with Genocider's scissors. His eyes twitching, his mouth mumbling. "Y-You…" He whispers. "S-So you're the one responsible… You're why she brought me here… I… hate… you… so… much… sooo… muuch… sooooo..." and he bleeds out, eyes rolling back. I don't think he was any more grounded in reality than Fukawa was.

"I-It wasn't me… it was her… all her…" Fukawa mumbles, tears now rolling down her face. She can no longer differentiate between the story and reality. She broke.

**It... was… all.. her. Touko asked for this. Touko went through the door on the right. Touko decided to pursue her impossible dream, never seeing her fantasies for what they are. And here, Touko stands, in front of her man. I hope she earned the happiness she sought…**

Fukawa, seems to have given up all rationality. Now she wails on the spot. She weeps as if her tears would bring him back. She claws at her own face until she begins to bleed.

**…But… this story still needs an ending…**

The room shifts around her. It shifted into a more personal room, a girl's bedroom. And in the middle… a chair… and a rope… Fukawa understands…

**Every story ends…**

Fukawa stumbles toward the chair…

**And if they go on long enough, they all end in death…**

Fukawa stands on the chair.

**There is only one way this story can end…**

Fukawa put the rope around her neck.

**…with a room, a chair, and a rope.**

Fukawa kicks back.

**And even though her body weights Touko down, her soul only goes up. It takes her a while to realize where she was… heaven. Her and her man, together at last. She ran toward him, and he accepted her with open arms. And there they lived… happily… forever…**

**The end.**

"Byakuya-sama…" Fukawa mumbles. "Byakuya-sama…"

**I kid of course. Heaven is where good people go. Fukawa went down there, hell. There she was reunited with all her other victims, and they had much work to do. And there… they lived… forever…**

**The end. The curtain closes. The audience cheers. The tears rolled...**

**But the actor never came out, never bowed, never went home. For there were no actors. Only a girl, a room, a chair, a rope.**

And the credit rolls, playing the song "Wonderful Wonderful" unironically. Sound of the audience cheering and clapping can be heard.

**Touko's 'The Tale of Touko' by Touko, directed by Touko, written by Touko, played by Touko, narrated by Touko...**

And with that, Fukawa Touko was gone. Hanging loosely on that rope… is flesh and blood. Nothing more.

None of us said anything. What is there to say? We chose our lives over hers, and there she is. This is what we chose. Eleven lives, over one. Surely this is preferable to the alternative…

"That was underwhelming." Togami says nonchalantly. "Not a very satisfying conclusion to our game…"

"You think so?" Ludenberg asks. "I thought it was appropriately poetic."

"What you think matters little. If I say it's underwhelming, it's underwhelming."

"You're completely mad…" Asahina says. "Enough with the 'game' crap… Three of our friends are dead, you know."

"Naturally."

"You sick fuck…" Kuwata grumbles.

"That's it…" Oowada says, cracking his knuckles. "I've had enough of this little shit. Someone needs to smash his face in…"

"Calm yourself!" Kirigiri says. "Not here. We'll deal with this later…" s_ooner than you may think Kirigiri… Oh we'll deal with this alright…_ "Now… I have a question for you Monokuma. You've made both executions very elaborate. Why?"

"Because he thinks it's funny no doubt." Ludenberg says.

"Well I can't deny that one…" Monokuma says. "But more than anything else… These punishments, this despair, isn't just for you guys you know? They're for all mankind! These punishments were designed to transform every last bit of hope into despair!"

"What do you mean by that?" Oogami asks.

"Oh gimmie a break! Your obsession with finding meaning in things is meaningless!"

"Hmph. It doesn't matter either way." Togami says. "In the end, I'm the one who will emerge victorious, and when that happens, all will be made known."

"Swoon! You get it at least! You and I could make real great pals."

"I'll warn you now, after I've seized my victory, you're next. I **will** kill you. On the name of those destined to triumph, on my name as a Togami."

And that's when I lost it. "Huh… heh heh… heh heh heheheheh hahahahahahahah HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" I'm holding my stomach at this point, gripping my seat. Lord I don't care that I'm drawing attention to myself right now, this is just too much.

"What's so funny?"

"You… hahahahaha… sorry… HAHAHAHAHA! Oh this is gold…"

"Explain yourself."

"Haha… I was just thinking how dumb I was for pointing out your lack of subtlety and bewilderment at the nature of the game. Maybe you'll get better at it and actually begins to pose a threat… But now I see those concerns were completely misplaced. A Togami will always be a Togami. Heh heh… seize your victory… killing the one behind it all… swearing it on your name… You fight poison with swords little man, charging head-on at the enemy, never seeing the chain around your neck, the poison within your veins… Maybe one of these days you'll understand." _Perhaps even today…_

"You must admit it IS pretty amusing…" Ludenberg giggles.

"It is the most amusing thing I've ever heard. Christ it's like watching a crowned chimp marching on a wooden pig with a golden sword in hand, proclaiming its destined superiority. Heh heh…"

"When you lay dying and gasping… know that I enjoyed it…" Togami glares at me.

_Oh I'll remember. I'll remember this trial as well little man. And I won't have to remember long… But I'll remember…_

_Tonight... we have business... The consequences be damned... This will not slide Togami..._

* * *

There you go, second trial's over. But WAIT, there's still more before we move on to the next part of the canon story. We're not done yet friends. Shiki has unfinished business.  
So yeah, I decided to use my own execution for this one. Tell me what you think about that. I'm not entirely certain what I'll do with the remaining executions yet, we'll see.  
Hope you enjoyed it and leave reviews.


	19. Chapter 16

Sacchin: Thanks! I'm quite fond of that part myself. Togami will be appropriately handled, though we may have different ideas of what is and isn't appropriate ;).  
Guest: I read over that chapter twice before actually, not that that's any excuse. I think editing was a lot easier when my chapters were a lot shorter. Fujisaki revealed her secret to Fukawa. I didn't mention that? Fujisaki decided to reveal both her gender and personality before Monokuma does so first, and she started with Fukawa since they shared the same feminine interest. Fukawa and Genocider share the same knowledge, but not memories, so I thought that would work. I'd appreciate it if you can point out just one or two errors. I skimmed over the chapter again and spotted nothing wrong so maybe it's just something with my English. As for the Biggest Despair Inducing Event in History, I should be able to write my way out of that easily, it was pretty self-explanatory anyway, if memories serve.  
Kamilia07329: Thanks! I quite liked how the execution turned out as well. The one in the fan book did sound kinda generic to me. I knew I would get the names mixed up at some point… Oh well now that they're out of the way there's only Oowada/Oogami to have to look out for. If Celes is going to attempt murder at the third trial it will be very different since she only did it in the canon story because she saw a promising opportunity (which isn't possible now since Yamada's dead and Oowada's alive.)  
TheRoseShadow21: Shiki's going to do a lot more than calling Togami names friend ;).  
Jin-Rimu: Fukawa might be the one who irritated me the most in the canon story but yeah that was kinda sad. They'll only have a chance to face Monokuma once they've sorted out all their internal conflicts. Speaking of internal conflicts…  
KnuckleJoe8: I'm really glad you like it! I think it's more OC than SI (Self-insertion right?). Dangan Ronpa seems like a great setting for that. Also, that's a great song to go with this.  
AnimesWorld: Sounds rough. Thanks a lot for still taking time out to review my chapters by the way, I really appreciate that :). Nothing personal, Fukawa, Fujisaki, I'd mess everyone up if given the opportunity. Togami's an arse for most of the canon story so it's only natural (arguably he's still a bit of an arse by the end). To be fair the villain only wins if neither murderer is correctly identified so yeah. It always bothered me that they let Togami get off so easy. Shiki's here to fix that ;). P.S. Where I'm from people watch Korean Drama a lot when I was much younger so that did bring back memories :). Haven't watched Jormungand beyond the first few episodes since I was quite busy and lost momentum at some point. Maybe I'll come back to it one of these days.  
This should be the final part of the game's second chapter. This won't be from Shiki's POV since we do need someone else's perspective every now and then. Chapter 16 will be about half as long as the previous ones. Hope you like it!

* * *

**Chapter 16 **(Kuwata's POV)

* * *

**This message was written for Maizono and Kuwata.**

**You've both seen what Togami did during today's class trial. You've both expressed desires to deal with him. I think now is the time to act.**

**I believe you two would want Togami dealt with. I am, of course, not speaking of murder. That would require one of us to sacrifice himself and that's something I will not ask of you. None of us will be under any kind of threat. However, if we do this, I suspect things won't be the same. But I also believe that the alternative is worse, and even if it isn't, after what he did to Fujisaki, this will at least be enjoyable. If you refuse to let Togami Byakuya get away with this, meet me in my room at midnight. Tell no one else. And most importantly, whatever comes after, remember that we were all in this together.**

**Pass this on to Kuwata.**

**Shiki**

**(Leon, this is Sayaka. I've received the letter. I think we should go through with this. Togami's a threat and a cold-hearted bastard and nothing could have demonstrated this more clearly than how he treated the previous two victims. I hope you agree to join me Leon, the others are too squeamish for this. It has to be us.**

**Sayaka.)**

* * *

And that's how this all started. We both met in his room, he told us what we needed us to do, and here I am, in front of Togami's room, a baseball bat in my hand.

Celes knocks again. Yes, Celes's here, and we can thank Sayaka for that. When Nakahara found out that Sayaka had invited Celes to come along, he almost threw a hissy fit. Somehow I get the feeling he doesn't like his plan being altered. Dude probably has OCD or some shit… Sayaka stood by her decision though. 'Celes should be with us' she said, 'Nakahara won't say it but he's thankful. The repercussion to this will be great, and Celes should be by our sides when it hits.'

"Would be pretty funny if he doesn't come out wouldn't it?" I say to ease the tension.

"He will." Celes replies. "He will take all the time in the world to make himself presentable, then he will open the door just enough to get a glimpse. I'll catch his interest quickly with what Nakahara has given me, and he will be too intrigued to simply leave. Then you'll do your thing."

"Yeah… my thing…" I grip the bat in my hand firmly. When this thing descends on his rich little head, I'll savor the impact. The bastard butchered two of our friends, watched as Fujisaki bleeds and openly mocked us all. Nakahara better has good things in store for him. Finally the door opens...

"What do you want?" Togami peers cautiously out of his room.

"Shipment C-058." Ludenberg smiles.

That simple phrase took him off guard. Togami was silent for a while. "Do you know what that means?"

"A shipment that belonged to the Togami. It went missing two years ago, along with one of your uncles."

"How do you know of this?"

_Nakahara Shiki_. "Come to my room and I'll show you." _The Super High-School Level Informant plucked a simple thing out of his endless wealth of secrets._

Togami considers this for a while. _What if he said no? What if the information Nakahara gave us wasn't as useful as he thought? I can stick my bat inside, barge in and beat the shit out of the fucker here and now, can I? M-Maybe I should…_

"Fine. But I expect you to fully explain yourself once we're there." He steps out of his room. _Fatal mistake…_

**THUMP.**

"And that's that." Ludenberg says as Togami's body drops limply to the floor.

"You were made for this weren't you? You act as naturally as you breath. Sayaka was right in inviting you…"

"And for that I am grateful. If there's going to be a rift in our little community. I plan on being the winning team."

_This again? _"What are you all talking about? You, Maizono and Nakahara seems to know something I don't. What is it?"

"You'll see eventually."

"Whatever…" I bend down to check the body. "Out cold, heartless bastard…"

"Heh heh… You know what Nakahara would have said to that?"

"What?"

"'Heartless? Bring him to me and I'll show you his beating heart.'"

I sigh. "Sick minds think alike."

"Great minds do too."

She was, of course, referring to what Nakahara has said before. I was having doubt, so I told him something that I no longer quite remember.

_Are we seriously doing this? Togami, that monster, seems untouchable…_

That amused him. His respond still scares me. It begs the question of whether I had really picked the lesser of the two evils.

_Monster? Bring him to me and I'll show you a little boy. Untouchable? After I'm done with him he'll be the least untouchable person there is. There are no monsters, only people. No one is untouchable; we're all just flesh and blood. Flesh and blood are fragile things. Bring him to me and I'll show you that one truth._

That's when I knew this wasn't going to be pretty. I've picked my poison.

"So are you going to just stand there?" Ludenberg asks.

I shake my head to clear myself of any doubt I might have had, bend down to grab Togami's collar, and start dragging him down the hallway. "Can't I curb stomp the fucker right here? Why do we need to bring him to Nakahara? He doesn't seem all that tough…"

"No… No he doesn't... But he can do much more."

"Tch. Like what? He didn't even seem all that angry during the trial..."

"Blind as a bat you are. His rage is cold and quiet, but it's indisputably there. It's not his screaming and swearing you should fear, he isn't you, Oogami, Oowada. It's his silence you should fear."

"I don't get it…"

"You of all people should. Did you not take one good look at his eyes during our first class trial? He briefly regarded both you and Maizono as enemies then, and that was a dangerous thing. See, Nakahara doesn't see his enemies as people, he sees them as problems, and what little ethical constraints he might have had vanish. Morality no longer holds meaning in his head, though I'm not entirely sure it ever held any meaning to him in the first place, and that's an... undesirable situation to be in..."

"Ugh... I still don't get it..."

"Of course you don't." She reaches over and ruffles my hair, smiling patronizingly.

"Oi, hand off!"

"Heh heh… of course." Celes turns around and begins knocking on Nakahara's door. _My part's pretty much over right?_

He peers out from his room, sees Togami, and opens the door to let us in. "Maizono's not back yet… The hell's taking the woman so long? The storage room isn't locked after curfew right?"

"It isn't." Celes replies.

"You did give her quite a big list of things to gather…" I point out.

"Fair enough." He says. "I'll assume Togami's out cold. How did you do it?"

I wave my baseball bat at him.

"Are you bleeding serious!?"

"W-What?"

"You wacked him over the head with the bat and called it a day?"

"Well yeah…" _What the hell did he expect me to do?_

"Bloody hell…" He grumbles. "Sit him on the chair."

I comply reluctantly. _When did he become the boss here anyway?_

"You're still here Ludenberg?" He asks. "Your part's done. If you leave now I'm sure the others will forget you ever took part in this…"

"What comes after will be inevitable." Celes says. "I'd rather be on the side that gets things done."

"Fair enough…" _Did he actually sound relieve? _Nakahara pulls a syringe out of his pocket…

"What the fuck is that!?" I shout.

"A syringe." He replies.

"W-What the hell for?"

"To make sure he stays unconscious. That bat isn't reliable enough to keep him down. We need to be sure he stays down until we tie him up. It's not lethal you know? And when the pain hits he'll wake up right away. Actually it would be even more effective if pain is the first thing he feels once he's up…"

"Ugh… fine… whatever…" This conversation is already making me uncomfortable. "Where the hell did you get that thing anyway?"

He tilts his head, injecting a small dosage into Togami's arm. "What do you mean get it? I always had it on me."

_Wait what? _"You came to school with that?"

"Obviously" He says as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "It's more reliable than a taser you know? Don't people carry these sort of things around for self-defense all the time?"

"I know I fucking don't…"

"You people are bleeding insane…" He rests his forehead on his fingers, looking flabbergasted.

"I don't want to hear that from you..."

"Nakahara-san" Sayaka enters the room, carrying a bunch of ropes and tapes. "I got what you wanted."

"Satisfactory. Tie him to the chair." Nakahara orders. "Make sure it's tight enough. There will be a lot of squirming."

"That would be ideal…"

"Indeed. Kuwata, you're a dude, help her."

I get up reluctantly… "You're a dude too y'know?"

"Details details… Yes… like that… Now pull the tape over his eyes, mouth and ears. Put extra layers on his ears."

"Huh? Why?"

"The more senses we can block out, the more his mind will focus on the pain. Moreover screaming actually helps with enduring pain so we should reduce that too."

"True enough." Celes says. "You're knowledgeable about the most peculiar things Nakahara…"

"Someone has to be... You sure you're still in on this Ludenberg?"

"Oh shut up Nakahara…" Sayaka says. "She'll be with us and that's final."

"What the missus said." Ludenberg grins. "You're really fussy about this aren't you?"

"Just… making sure…" He says.

"Alright… done!" I finish. "Do whatever it is you're going to do Nakahara."

"Not yet. Tape his hand to the table. He's left handed right? Use his left hand then. Be doubly careful about this part, that's where I'll work." _'Work', he actually said 'work'…_ "Leave his thumb out."

"Are you going to cut his thumb off?" Sayaka asks.

Nakahara chuckles, pulling out his butterfly knife and twirling the thing in his hand as if it was an extension of his body. "I'm going to cut off a lot less Maizono…"

"Less!?" I shout. "This asshole butchered two of our friends!"

"Complain once I'm done. I can always cut more if you're not satisfied."

"…Ugh... fine…"

He pulls his gloves and tie off once we're done. "Now leave."

"Huh? What?"

"Leave. I'll call you when I'm done. Leave the door open a bit so I know if someone comes."

"Hell no! I'll watch!"

"You'll see the delicious part eventually, of that I can guarantee. Now leave."

Sayaka places a hand on my shoulder. "We should go. Nakahara got this."

"Whatever…" I say. "You better do your part well Nakahara. Fujisaki and Yamada went down the incinerator because of him. And remember the way he treated Fukawa."

"I'll remember…" Nakahara says, almost whispering, his eyes never leaving his victim. "This little man… Yes… I'll remember…" There was no obvious malice in his voice, I somehow find that rather off-putting.

Me, Sayaka and Celes steps out into the hallway and waited outside his room. Nakahara slides something into the door and closes it, probably to prevent it from locking itself while still muffling the noise somewhat.

"I don't know about you guys…" I start. "But this isn't making me feel like we're taking the moral high ground here…"

"So?" Sayaka asks with a straight face.

"The missus said it all really." Celes shrugs. "Moral high ground stopped mattering the first time one of us killed. It didn't start mattering after one of us cut two corpses into little pieces and threw them down the incinerator."

"I-I guess…" I mumble.

"Make up your mind Kuwata." Sayaka chides. "I'm serious. You can't go through with this half-heartedly."

"Yeah… Yeah okay…" And then I hear something. "Did you hear that? Is that... screaming?"

"I'm certain I put plenty of tapes over his mouth…" Sayaka whispers to herself. "How is there still screaming?"

"That's a good sign." Celes says. "Nakahara knows his things."

The muffled scream slowly increases in volume. It's hard to believe that voice belongs to Togami. The smug certainty is replaced by confusion and desperation.

"This is good..." Maizono mumbles. "I was afraid it wouldn't be sufficient to send Togami a message... But this is a lot better than what I was expecting..."

"S-Still… He's just... 'working' with the finger right?" I ask. "The hell is he doing... wait… something else's going on…"

**_…It's a bitch convincing people to like you~…_**

**_… I stop now call me a quitter…_**

**_…Da da da da da da da da…_**

"He's… He's singing…" I mutter, flabbergasted.

"I-I think so…" Sayaka replies.

Celes just whistles, clearly amused.

**_…Pleasing everyone isn't like you…_**

**_Dancing jigs… da da da da da…_**

**_Da da da da da da da da…_**

_It's scary how casual that sounds. He's singing slightly off tune in places and is skipping over the lyrics that he had forgotten. I don't know what he's doing in there, but Celes might be right. Nakahara does not understand morality. 'Working' WAS the right word to use._

"Is he actually enjoying this?" I ask.

"I don't think so…" Sayaka replies. "H-He just sounds… kinda bored… The tone sounds as if he's humming it while cleaning his garden or something…"

"Does that make it better or worse?" Celes grins. _Worse... definitely worse... There is no passion, no enjoyment, no hate... He was right. He IS working, nothing more._

**_I've got to hand it to you... You play by all the same rule…_**

**_It takes the truth to fool me… and now you've made me angry~…_**

We were mostly silent after that. What was there to say? Nakahara is singing absentmindedly while doing god-knows-what to Togami in there. The creepiest thing is, like Sayaka said, there's nothing in his voice, nothing except ruthless indifference. It's even more jarring hearing Togami's muffled scream over the whole thing, it's almost like he was trying to drown out the voice.

By 'we', I of course meant me and Sayaka. Celes begins whistling to the tune. Figures…

**_I can't decide… whether you should live or die~…_**

**_Oh you'll probably go to heaven, please don't hang your head and cry~…._**

**_No wonder why my heart feels dead inside…_**

**_Cold and hard and petrified…_**

**_Lock the doors and close the blinds we're going for a ride!~_**

"I-Is he done yet?" I begin to fidget. The screaming gets louder by the second while Nakahara's voice remains as unaffected as ever. I'm starting to become genuinely uncomfortable. "He's just dealing with Togami's thumb right? What's taking him so long?"

"It is rather strange…" Sayaka mutters. "He's working specifically with the thumb… I wonder…"

"You can just come inside and see for yourself know?" Nakaha says.

Sayaka yelps in surprise.

"What the hell Nakahara!?" I shout.

"Get in."

So we did. Togami sits on the chair, though he hardly seems anymore conscious now than he was before we bring him in. There is an absurd amount of blood around his left hand but everything seems to be intact. Nakahara's suit vest seems squeaky clean, he has put his tie back on and his hands are kinda wet. Must have cleaned up a bit before he went and get us. I glance back at Togami's hand. His fingers are still intact. Nakahara didn't cut them off. But for some reason... two of his fingers are very, very red... The skin on them... wait... that's not skin... that's flesh...

"H-His skin…" Maizono mutters. "I-It's gone…"

"What do you mean it's gone? It's in the bin." He replies half-heartedly. "Peeled them off and tossed them out. I'm no magician, I don't make things disappear."

"Y-You flayed him..." I say in disbelief.

"Flayed his thumb yes. Flayed his index finger as well. Figured he deserved a bit more. That and you didn't seem quite satisfied with just a thumb. I can move all the way up his arm before the day's over if you wish."

'No!" I feel like throwing up. "T-This is gross…"

"No grosser than what he did."

"A lot more elegant if you ask me." Celes says, keeping a straight face. "To your credit that was clean work."

"Yes... A lot more effective as well…" Sayaka seems more impressed than grossed out at this point. "A flayed finger, in theory, will remind him better of the threat we pose than phantom pain would. He'll think twice next time he plays with our lives."

"And the main course has yet to come…" Nakahara says.

"W-What do you mean?" I ask worriedly.

"The fingers will begin to rot. Then they will reek. The pain won't stop for quite a while. Actually it's unlikely to stop at all. Yes… and the humiliation is the most delicious part… I'd enjoy watching him fumble at the dinner table… What comes after this will be infinitely worse than the pain he felt today, and he won't ever forget… Yes… that's a privilege I won't let him have."

Cles begins chuckling.

"Hmm?"

"Nothing... I was just having a mental image of Togami being spoon fed... The irony is simply too beautiful."

I look down at Togami. He hardly looks like the proud boy he was a few hours ago. He's breathing and sweating heavily. Nakahara hasn't bothered getting the tapes and ropes off him yet. "…so what now?"

"Just toss him in his room. Bandage his fingers if you can be arsed, but otherwise don't fret it. He won't die of blood loss. Eventually he'll get the tapes and ropes off... Yes... and he'll do that with his skinned fingers... It should take roughly a few hours with his fingers like that. Won't last long enough for him to starve so no worry."

"The fallout to this will be a lot worse than I've initially anticipated…" Celes says. "Ah well, I've picked my poison."

"If you want to change your mind…" Nakahara begins.

"Quiet Nakahara." Sayaka says.

"Ugh… fine…"

Celes giggles, amused.

"It's amazing you guys can have a casual conversation in a situation like this…" I grumble.

"A situation like what?" Sayaka asks.

"Like… I mean… THAT!" I point at Togami's flayed fingers. The man is breathing even more heavily now. He may also be having occasional spasms if I'm not imagining things by this point. The state he's in makes me think of a fish in a basket, hopelessly flailing for life, forever powerless.

Sayaka sighs. "Are you having doubt now?"

"But… We just helped torture another one of us… We helped flayed two of his fingers! The others won't accept this… I-Is this what you meant? About picking sides?"

"Do you remember nothing of the last trial?" Sayaka shouts in frustration. "He butchered two of our friends and sent Fukawa to her death after toying with us all. He mocked the dead openly even after Fukawa's execution. And yet no one was going to do a damn thing! Are we going to wait for him to kill someone before one of us finally bothers to lift a finger? I won't have that. We hurt him before he hurt us. I don't care what the others think! We did the right thing and that's final…" She seems surprised by her own outburst for a second, before quickly recovering. "I-I want you to stay with us… but if you're having second thoughts about this… I'm sure Nakahara and Celes can keep quiet about your involvement…"

_Second thoughts? Yes… I have plenty of that right now… Seeing someone your age gets skinned can do that to you._

Celes looks at me, trying to deduce the outcome of this situation. Though I don't think she would raise that big a fuss either way. "I can keep secrets yes. Though I'd prefer to have a goon on our side. None of us three is any good at physical tasks you see..."

Nakahara's face is as unreadable as ever. No… it's not that it's unreadable… it's incomprehensible. It's not that I cannot see his thought processes; it's that I cannot understand them. "Do as you please. We'll make do."

"Choose, Leon." Sayaka says firmly, trying to keep a brave tone.

I quickly glance at our victim. Togami is looking even worse; his fingers are bright red, now that the flesh is completely exposed. A small nudge on his finger could cause him more pain than I've ever felt in my life. I… We... did this… Was this necessary? Was this just? Then I remember our 'friends'…

…Oowada Mondo and his loud violent threats…

…Ogami Sakura and her silent judging eyes…

…Asahina and her clumsy naïve rambling…

…Naegi and his unrelenting optimism…

...they all expressed disgust at Togami's actions...

…yet not one of them did a goddamn thing. They all sprouted idealism and empty threats but not one of them stood up and take care of the potential murderer in the room.

And yet… the four of us reduced that butcher to a wriggling victim. The cold-hearted monster now looks like the little spoilt brat that he is. In less than an hour, his untouchable aura, his unshakable pride, his unconscionable heart, all reduced to this… thing… this thing of flesh and blood…

Which side am I on, you ask?

"Aye… I'm with you… I don't care whether this is right or wrong, because I've seen the alternative. I refuse to sit on my ass and hope for the best like the others. Yes… I'm with you in this… The others be damned."

* * *

In case you're wondering Shiki was singing 'I can't decide' by Scissors Sisters. Don't ask why he's singing an English song .-.  
And that's that. Quite short and all. Reviews would be great, thanks.


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